Turkish Press
April 27 2005

Press Review:

Cumhuriyet:
ERDOGAN ADDRESSES EU CONFERENCE IN ISTANBUL, DENIES SLOWDOWN IN
ACCESSION EFFORTS

Speaking at a conference yesterday organized by the Economist
magazine on Turkey’s European Union membership, Prime Minister
Recep Tayyip Erdogan denied claims that recently Turkey had lost
momentum in its efforts to join the EU following the Union’s summit
last December, adding that not Ankara but the EU had slowed down
concerning Turkey’s EU membership bid. `Any delay is from the EU,
not from Turkey,’ he said. The premier touted his Justice and
Development Party’s (AKP) EU reforms, calling them a `silent
revolution.’ Touching on the so-called Armenian genocide, Erdogan
called for politicians and historians to research the issue.
`We’re ready to face up to our history, but others also need to
face their histories,’ said Erdogan. `We’re opening our
archives, but Armenia should also open its archives. Everybody should
reveal the facts.’ Erdogan stressed that no state has the right to
cast a shadow over another country’s past through lobbying. The
premier stated that secular, democratic Turkey was a model country in
its region. Later, Erdogan met with his Australian counterpart John
Howard to discuss bilateral relations. /Cumhuriyet/