Brussels, 20/10/2000 (Agence Europe) - Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Mesut Yilmaz, directly responsible for European affairs, met Commissioner Gunter Verheugen in Brussels on Friday in the perspective of the Accession Partnership that the Commission is to propose to the Council (which will have to decide through a qualified majority) on 8 November. The meeting enabled the Commission to form a more precise idea of the elements to be integrated (and how to integrate them) so that the document relating to the Partnership (which is not negotiated with the Turkish side) is a commonly accepted basis for consolidating rapprochement between the EU and Turkey. EUROPE has reason to believe that the Partnership: a) will take note of the commitments made by the Turkish authorities regarding the rule of law and human rights, encouraging the Turkish authorities to act on their commitments; b) will raise the Kurdish issue with caution, pleading in favour of the rights of all Turkish citizens - including linguistic and cultural rights - being improved; c) will mention the problem of Cyprus (which Ankara wants above all to avoid), aligning itself on what was said at the European Council of Helsinki (whose conclusions were accepted by Turkey).
At a press conference Thursday evening, Mr. Yilmaz strongly attacked the attitude of the German Christian-Democrats who, in a seminar organised that very afternoon in the EP, had hinted that Turkey had no place in the EU, being a Muslim country. "This attitude is not a European attitude", declared Mr. Yilmaz, welcoming the fact that some were finally showing their true colours after what had been said in Helsinki. For the Turkish Deputy Prime Minister, the EU already has 30 million Muslims and these will be 100 million when Turkey becomes a member. "I believe that the EU can handle that", he said before recalling that Turkey was a secular country and that it expected of its European partners that they "demonstrate the same reserve on religious matters". Mesut Yilmaz put forward the following line of reasoning: i) the Helsinki Summit was a major political event that had restored and given back all its meaning to the Euro-Turkish partnership, the Fifteen having on that occasion recovered "the inspiration and grandeur of vision of Europe's founding fathers"; ii) "the ball is now in Turkey's court", and, in particular, in his own, as it is he himself who has to be "the driving force of the convergence process with the Copenhagen criteria" and "ensure the completion of the modernisation of Turkish society and its economy, according to a rhythm that will render Turkey credible to the eyes of its European partners and is acceptable the Turkish citizens"; iii) the meaning of the Accession Partnership, is "to help us", reason why, "other than material contributions", it has to bear witness to understanding and trust, a state of mind and a climate "that encourages us to continue and succeed in our reforms", rather than being a "reflection of our shortcomings and of what remains for us to accomplish".
Mr. Yilmaz, moreover, met European Commission Deputy-President Ms. Loyola de Palacio, for an exchange of views essentially on Euro-Turkish relations in the field of energy. The question of the transit through Turkey of natural gas from Russia destined for Europe was especially raised.