29/08/2014 (Agence Europe) - EU is Turkey's strategic objective. On Wednesday 27 August, the new Turkish prime minister - former foreign affairs minister, Ahmet Davutoglu - committed to continuing Turkey's EU accession process, stating that this was a “strategic objective” for his country. “But Turkey will continue to use its strategic power in the region” independently of the EU, he added. Davutoglu, who presented his government on 29 August, has chosen the former European affairs minister, Mevlut Cavusoglu, as minister for foreign affairs. Volkan Bozkir, a former diplomat, takes charge of relations with the EU. Turkey has officially been an EU accession candidate since 1999 and opened its negotiations in 2004. However, the process is long - not least because of the Cypriot crisis. On 30 October 2012, Recep Tayyip Ergogan, who was prime minister at that time, threatened to turn from the EU, setting 2023 (the centenary of the Turkish Republic) as the deadline for accession (see EUROPE 10722). (CG)