Brussels, 14/12/2001 (Agence Europe) - The President of Tüsiad (Turkish Industrialists' and Businessmen's Association), Tuncay Özilhan, has written to the participants in the Laeken Summit, stating that Turkey had demonstrated its firm attachment to the accession process and it was now for the EU to respond by sending the Turkish people an unambiguous message that once it has met the Copenhagen criteria, Turkey will genuinely receive equal treatment and be welcomed into the Union. The Turkish employers feel that the Laeken Summit should decide to immediately launch the screening process and prepare for accession negotiations, which would confirm its sincerity with regard to Turkey's request to join the EU.
The Turkish business leaders noted that the EU/Turkey Customs Union will be five years old at the end of the year and felt it was probably time for the full liberalisation of tariffs on Turkish agricultural products and for the EU to speed up the process of including services in the Customs Union. Tüsaid (which is a member of UNICE) noted that progress in the field of financial co-operation would have the "side effect of improving the EU's image in Turkey".