Anadolu Agency, Turkey
March 13 2009

Turkish minister says European parliament report affirms EU accession
process

Istanbul, 13 March: Turkish State Minister and Chief Negotiator for EU
talks Egemen Bagis said Friday [13 March] the adoption of a report on
Turkey by 528 European Parliament (EP) deputies is an affirmation of
Turkey’s accession process.

Speaking to reporters at Istanbul’s Ataturk International Airport
after a trip to the Czech Republic, Bagis said that the EP report is
overall a balanced one.

Compared to the previous years, the EP report is more constructive and
makes a call to strengthen Turkey’s efforts for full membership to the
EU, Bagis said.

"The absence of Armenian allegations on the incidents of 1915 in the
report and a clear referral to PKK [Kurdistan Workers’ Party] as a
terrorist organization within the report are very important. The EP
report is the joint report of 27 EU countries representing eight
different political parties and it is a balanced one," Bagis said.

In reference to a question on the upcoming visit of US President
Barack Obama to Turkey, Bagis said that this visit is an indication of
where Turkey has come globally.

"Turkey is not merely a member of the UN Security Council. It is a
country that continues negotiations with the EU and runs the
Secretariat General of the Organization of Islamic Conference. The
fact that Turkey has become a country that is consulted with in global
matters should be a matter of pride for all of us," Bagis said.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress