Turkish EU Minister speaks at Catholic University of Portugal

Turkey's European Union Minister and Chief Negotiator Egemen Bagis said that the EU project would not be completed without Turkey. Bagis delivered a speech regarding relations between Turkey and the EU at the Catholic University of Portugal. "Although we think that the EU is the most successful peace project of the history of humanity, the EU project cannot be completed without Turkey. Only Turkey's accession will turn the EU project into a global peace project," he said. Trade volume between Turkey and Portugal which had been 375,000 USD in 2002 exceeded 1 billion U.S. dollars at the end of 2011, he said. Bagis said that there were sound relations between Turkey and Portugal, and these two countries could be the powers that would make a great impact on the future of the EU. Unfortunately the EU has been passing through an economic crisis, he said, adding that Turkey's accession to the EU would make the union more competitive and powerful.