Turkey urges the EU to start acting consistently

Belgium, set take over the European Union's six-month rotating presidency from Spain as of tomorrow, should show "consistency" regarding Turkey's EU membership process, something that the 27-nation bloc is currently not doing, the Foreign Ministry said yesterday. A ceremony for the opening of a new chapter between Turkey and the EU in Ankara's accession negotiations with the bloc will take place in Brussels today. The chapter on food safety, veterinary and phytosanitary policy is opening on the final day of Spain's six-month term presidency – the only chapter to have opened under Spain's presidency, although in January, at the beginning of its presidency, Spain said it hoped to start talks on four chapters during its turn at the helm. Turkey, after formally beginning accession negotiations with the EU in 2005, has so far opened talks on only 12 chapters. Spain made outstanding efforts to open the new chapter, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Burak Ozugergin told reporters yesterday. "They pressured both the mechanisms and the member countries," he added, referring to Spain's efforts to overcome the resistance of certain other EU member states to taking a further step towards Turkey's EU membership. "The number of chapters that can't be opened (now) is 18 out of the total of 35 negotiating chapters. Is something like this acceptable? We've come to a position where we can't open chapters due to various countries or individuals. Eighteen is about 50 percent of the 35 chapters plus one." He added, "We expect Belgium to iron out problems created by the EU. The EU should give slome thought about where it wants to go with Turkey. You don't open the chapters and then say, 'Your axis has shifted.' The EU has to be consistent, and Belgium should show this consistency during its presidency." Asked about remarks by US Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian affairs Philip Gordon last week suggesting that Turkey is alienating its US supporters and needs to demonstrate its commitment to its partnership with the West, remarks made on the eve of a meeting before Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and US President Barack Obama in Toronto, Ozugergin gave a curt, sharp response. "We find this unfair and unfortunate," he said. "Unfair because Turkey doesn't need to prove its loyalty to the Western world, and unfortunate because the way these remarks came before Mr. Erdogan and Mr. Obama's meeting makes one think that there is a problem regarding the timing as well." He also announced that Turkish and EU officials would gather in Turkey next month for a meeting focusing on the strategic aspects of Turkey's EU bid.