Sweden's Bildt: ”Turkey's foreign policy helps boost its EU bid”

Turkey’s emergence as a strong foreign policy player in its region is making some people nervous, but Swedish Foreign Minister Carld Bildt says the country’s step forward is good for everyone and calls for more dialogue with Ankara. "Very little would have happened in the last 50 years without political leadership. We need to overcome the burden of the past," he says. Turkey’s geo-strategic location and its increasingly dynamic foreign policy are advantages for Europe and the country’s European Union aspirations, according to Bildt. "For some, it has been difficult to digest Turkey’s change from a passive partner to the far more active role it is playing now,” Bildt said in an interview with the Turkish Policy Quarterly journal. "One thing is certain; we need more dialogue with Ankara on all these issues now than before." He praised Turkey’s regional peace efforts, calling them highly important. "Though some complain about Turkey’s improving relations with Syria, the EU is now also seeking to normalize relations with Syria," he said. "In the southern Caucasus, Afghanistan, Pakistan... Turkey is a major player. And in Tehran, Turkey has an amount of access that few others have." On the subject of EU accession, he said the Cyprus deadlock was negatively affecting the country’s chances of joining the bloc. "It is a regrettable fact that direct trade between northern Cyprus and the European Union is blocked," he added. "A settlement on the island would sort out a number of issues in one stroke: the direct trade problem, the chapters of the acquis that are blocked and EU-NATO cooperation problems."