EU SUMMIT: Turkey has grudgingly accepted the EU's decision to assess Ankara's record on democracy and human rights in December 2004 before starting membership negotiations.
EU leaders agreed yesterday to open accession talks with Turkey if Ankara has fulfilled the political conditions for membership by that date.
Turkey's initial reaction was one of severe disappointment, with senior politicians accusing the EU of discrimination against the predominantly Muslim country. But after talks with the French President, Mr Jacques Chirac and Germany's chancellor, Mr Gerhard Schröder, Turkey's political leader, Mr Tayyip Erdogan, sounded a more positive note.
"We will do our utmost to start the negotiations in 2004," he said.
The change of tone followed EU agreement to a commitment to start negotiations without further delay if the EU's assessment of Turkey is positive. If the EU decides in December 2004 that Turkey has fulfilled the political conditions for membership, negotiations are likely to begin in the middle of 2005.
Mr Schröder described the agreement as a success for Turkey, adding that other EU leaders resisted setting an earlier date for the start of negotiations.
"There were a few who wanted to go further but most were more cautious," he said.
Ankara and its allies in Washington conducted an aggressive campaign for an early start of negotiations but the President of the European Parliament, Mr Pat Cox, suggested that the US intervention may have been counterproductive.
"Sometimes our friends in Washington DC have a heavier hand than situations require and this might be one of those situations," he said.
Turkey this year abolished the death penalty and improved rights for minorities, including the Kurds who make up 20 per cent of the population. But the EU wants to see much more progress on minority rights and the elimination of torture and other abuses.
Turkish politicians are disappointed that the EU has not set a firm date for the start of negotiations. But Ankara is pleased that the EU has secured the commitment of all 10 candidate countries to allow Turkey to start accession talks if it fulfils the political criteria.
Greek and Turkish Cypriots negotiating in Copenhagen failed to agree yesterday on a reunification deal proposed by the United Nations. But Turkey has agreed to make a unilateral declaration promising to work towards achieving an accord on the future of Cyprus by February 28th, 2003.
The EU and Turkey have also reached an accord that will allow the EU's Rapid Reaction Force to use NATO equipment.
Under the deal, only EU member-states that are members of either NATO or the Partnership for Peace will be allowed to participate in EU military operations that use NATO assets. If NATO endorses the deal, it would enable the Rapid Reaction Force to carry out its first peacekeeping mission soon, in Macedonia.
EU leaders went a step further in Copenhagen by volunteering to take over NATO's role in leading the international peace stabilisation force (SFOR) in Bosnia, a move that would enable the United States to free up forces serving in the Balkans.
