Turkish Prime Minister <b>Recep Tayyip Erdogan</b> criticized the recent report of the European Parliament on Turkey, saying that the time to discuss Turkey’s European identity is over.
Hosting a luncheon for the EU ambassadors, Erdogan said, “The recent report of the European Parliament on Turkey is unilateral. It also includes baseless and unacceptable elements. We think that the report was written in a style which could affect Turkey's EU accession process negatively.”
“If the European Parliament succeeds in displaying a constructive and impartial attitude, its reports and documents will be meaningful to Turkey. Despite all negative attitudes and all preventive attempts of some circles, Turkey will continue protecting its rights and make progress in its EU membership process," he said.
Prime Minister Erdogan told EU ambassadors, “as a guarantor state, we extend full support to the negotiation process in Cyprus. But it is clear that the negotiations cannot continue forever. Turkish Cypriots have already proved their will for a solution. We think that EU-member states should now take action and push the Greek Cypriot party to assume a compromising attitude.”
“The function of the European Parliament should not be acting as a spokesman for the Greek Cypriot party,” he said.
Egemen Bagis, Minister for EU Affairs and Chief Negotiator, who was also present at the meeting, stated for his part that Turkey's EU accession process is important for the country but it doesn't mean that Turkey is ready to sacrifice Cyprus in order to become a EU member. “Turkey eyes the Cyprus issue as a national problem. We extend full support to the negotiation process in Cyprus,'” he emphasized, TRT reported.
