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12/4/06

IHT: Don't set a deadline for Turkey, EU enlargement commissioner says


For the complete report in the International Herald Tribune click on this link

Don't set a deadline for Turkey, EU enlargement commissioner says

The European Union's enlargement commissioner issued an appeal Monday to the leaders of France and Germany not to press for the bloc to set a new deadline for Turkey, an EU candidate, to open its ports to Cyprus. Speaking on the eve of talks between Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany and President Jacques Chirac of France, Olli Rehn said strict deadlines did not produce results and that the Cyprus question was best solved comprehensively by the United Nations.

"I would ask Chancellor Merkel and President Chirac to look for a balanced solution which, on the one hand, shows the consequences of noncompliance by a candidate state but, at the same time, keeps the accession process with Turkey alive, because of its strategic importance for both Europe and Turkey," he said in an interview. EU-Digest comment: "Finally a sensible suggestion out of Bruxelles on Turkey and the Cyprus issue - afterall it takes two to Tango"

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