Barroso, Rehn reiterate their support for Turkey's EU membership

The European Union should abide by its commitment on Turkey's full membership process, European Commission head Jose Manuel Barroso said yesterday. Commenting on French President Nicolas Sarkozy's efforts to hinder Turkey's full EU membership talks, Barroso said, "Sarkozy's request to block Turkey's EU negotiation process hurts the EU's credibility." In related news, EU Commissioner for Enlargement Olli Rehn yesterday said that Ireland's recent rejection of the Treaty of Lisbon doesn't mean that the EU has also rejected its enlargement process. Speaking at a conference in Brussels on the Western Balkans, Rehn stated that enlargement policy was not an issue during the referendum campaign. "Ireland's recent rejection will not affect Turkey's negotiation process," he added.