Brussels, 09/06/2010 (Agence Europe) - Turkey hopes to open an additional chapter (on food safety and plant health) in membership talks “by the end of the Spanish Presidency”, that is, by the end of the month, said Egemen Bagis, Turkey's minister for European affairs and chief negotiator for membership, addressing a small group of journalists on Wednesday 9 June. The new Turkish law in this field, imposed by the 27 EU member states as an “opening benchmark” for the chapter in question, will be voted “today or tomorrow” at the Turkish parliament, Bagis said. In total, the country will then have opened 13 chapters, only one of which, on science and research, has already been provisionally closed. Ankara also trusts that the other three chapters still to be negotiated (i.e.: not blocked for political reasons) - namely competition policy, public procurement and education/culture - may be opened during the second half of the year under Belgian EU Presidency.
Cyprus. When asked about Turkey's refusal to apply the additional protocol on extension of EU/Turkey customs union to Cyprus (a matter that is blocking more than 10 chapters in the talks on accession), Bagis refused to budge. “Turkey is prepared to open its ports and airports to Cyprus if Europe is prepared to implement its own decision to put an end to the isolation of northern Cyprus” by opening up direct trade relations, he said. Bagis, who will be in the northern part of Cyprus on Thursday 19 June, also underlined that the Turkish government “fully supports” the continuation of talks on reunification of the island. “We hope that a breakthrough can be made by the end of this year”, the Turkish minister said. (H.B./transl.jl)