In Turkey-skeptic France, Rehn voices support for Turkey's EU accession bid

Addressing the Senate of France, a country known its staunch opposition to Turkey's EU accession bid, with its President Nicolas Sarkozy offering Turkey a "privileged partnership" in lieu of full membership, EU Commissioner for Enlargement Olli Rehn yesterday gave full support to Turkey's EU accession bid. Praising Ankara's initiative to solve the so-called Kurdish or southeastern Anatolia issue by expanding the democratic rights and freedoms of citizens of Kurdish origin, Rehn said Turkey and the EU share common goals on many issues such as ensuring peace in the Middle East, stability in the Caucasus, the security of energy supplies, and stability in Afghanistan and Pakistan. He also stressed Turkey's reconciliation efforts with Armenia, which recently resulted in the signing of historic agreements towards normalized bilateral relations. Stating that the EU accession talks with Turkey have entered a difficult time, Rehn also urged Ankara to speed up democratic reform efforts. He also said that the Cyprus issue should be sorted out as soon as possible.