OLLI REHN: RECOGNITION OF GENOCIDE NOT PRECONDITION FOR TURKEY EU ACCESSION

PanARMENIAN.Net
02.11.2006 15:05 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn stated
that recognition of the Armenian Genocide is not a precondition for
Turkey’s EU accession. He expressed an opinion that EU-Turkey talks
should not "hang in the air," if Turkey "does what it should". He
urged the EU to have a "fair" stance on Turkey. "We should keep our
promises to Turkey, if we want it to respect European standards of
basic liberties, freedom of expression and belief. We undervalue the
importance of Turkey," stated the EU Enlargement Commissioner.

Olli Rehn underscored that there is "a vicious circle," based
on the one hand on widely spread opinion among Turks that the EU
does not want to see Turkey among its members, on the other hand –
EU disappointment in democratic reforms in Turkey. "We should tear
down this vicious circle, otherwise we will not have any progress,"
Olli Rehn said, reports RFE/RL.