Bagis criticizes Sarkozy
YAYINLAMA
GÜNCELLEME
In response to French President Nicolas Sarkozy’s statements that Turkey should be “a bridge between East and West instead of joining the EU,” Turkish EU Minister and Chief Negotiator Egemen Bagis yesterday said that certain European politicians who resemble the opposition wing in Turkey were worried about their upcoming elections and thus unfortunately falling deeper and deeper. In reply to reporters’ questions prior to the Conference on Cooperation between Internal and External Audit in Public Sector in EU Harmonization Process, Bagis said Turkey’s exerted efforts for reforms not for Europeans, but for Turkish citizens so that they could enjoy much better life standards. Furthermore, an article jointly written by former Belgian Foreign Minister Louis Michel and Bagis and published on EUobserver, indicates, “Neither the geographical, nor the philosophical, cultural and religious affiliations were parts of the membership criteria and have never been a part of European history.” The article writes that Brussels’ interest in Turkey’s membership is not smaller than Turkey’s interest in joining the EU, adding, “As former French President Jacques Chirac said: ‘The European Union and Turkey share a common destiny.’ In reaffirming this common destiny, we aim to prove that dialogue between the Orient and the Occident is possible, and that dialogue with Islam is not only feasible but also profitable and fruitful. Does not Europe count 15-20 million Muslims among its citizens?"