PanARMENIAN.Net

Austria: Turkey Not Ready for EU
29.09.2006 17:49 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The leader of Austria’s main opposition party,
Alfred Gusenbauer, said that Turkey is not yet ready to become a
member of the European Union. In an interview with AP days before a
general election in Austria, Gusenbauer, head of the country’s Social
Democrats, said there was a "common understanding" that Turkey was a
European country. However he said it was not yet ready to become a
member of the bloc because "not all European traditions have taken
root in all parts" of the country.

"At least at the moment, Turkey is not mature enough for becoming a
member of the European Union," Gusenbauer said. "I think there has to
be a long path of negotiations and of development to move Europe and
Turkey closer to each other. I cannot predict when the crossing point
will be reached. But it’s clear that without enormous endeavors on
both sides, this is going to be very complicated," he said, reports
ABHaber.