FRENCH FM GOING TO ANKARA FOR TALKS ON EU AND ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

PanARMENIAN.Net
04.10.2007 17:24 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner is set to
arrive in Ankara for talks to discuss France’s stand on Turkey’s EU
bid and the Armenian Genocide issue.

Kouchner’s visit to the Turkish capital will be the first high level
Turkish-French meeting since last week’s talks between Prime Minister
Recep Tayyip Erdogan and French President Nicholas Sarkozy in New
York. An official from the French Embassy in Ankara noted that the
visit by Kouchner would be brief but helpful, commenting "Kouchner
is coming to help construct an energetic relationship with Foreign
Minister Babacan."

The same official noted, "We are prepared to warm relations with
Turkey, and to open up channels of communication. This visit is a
signal that the dialogue between the two countries is getting better.

Sarkozy is maintaining his position on Turkey. But he also
wants reforms to continue in Turkey, and he will not interfere in
this…..When the reforms are complete, it will be time for France
to make some decisions," Hurriyet reports.

French President Sarkozy has many times stated that "Turkey has no
place in Europe."