Date: 8 December 2004
 
Speaker: H.E. Mustafa Oguz Demiralp, Permanent Delegate of Turkey to the European Union
 
Speaking at a CEPS lunchtime meeting on the 8th of December, H.E. Mustafa Oðuz Demiralp, Permanent Delegate of Turkey to the European Union, outlined Turkey’s official position in the run up to the European Council’s 17th of December decision on whether, when, and under what conditions to start accession negotiations with Ankara.   Building upon the conclusions of the Helsinki and Copenhagen summits, Turkey expects equal treatment, a fair evaluation of its performance in the fulfillment of the accession criteria based on the European Commission recommendation, and a clear date to start accession negotiations without delay.  Demiralp underlined that Turkey will accept no vagueness with regard to the finality of negotiations; full-membership is the only option considered by Turkey, privileged partnerships of any sort being ruled out.  Turkey considers certain provisions such as permanent safeguards or additional conditionality to be contrary to basic EU principles and thus unacceptable to Turkey.  In response to questions, Demiralp underlined that Russia would always be a crucial partner for Turkey but was not considered as an alternative to full EU membership.  Turkey sees its recognition of the Republic of Cyprus to be tied to a settlement of the Cyprus issue. The absorptions capacity of the EU was seen as a potential obstacle that would however be dealt with among partners during negotiations.