Turkey

Romanian ambassador to Berlin: “Romania ‘under stress’ but will abide by agreements”

The economic crisis has put Romanian political leadership under pressure, but this should not distract the government from complying with its international obligations, Romanian ambassador to Berlin Lazăr Comănescu said. Commenting on the loss of a confidence vote which sanctioned the end of the grand coalition government of Emil Boc, …

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Gül: Turkey walks stridently toward EU

Turkish President Abdullah Gül said Monday that Turkey was proceeding toward the European Union in a determined way. “We can be more hopeful in 2010,” Gül said. He added that whether Turkey became a full member was a different issue. On the Cyprus issue, Gül said that the EU was …

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Turkey Urges Retraint In Bulgaria Dispute

Turkey’s foreign minister on Tuesday urged Bulgaria to refrain from statements that could hurt the relationship between the two countries, after Sofia threatened to block Ankara’s EU membership pending compensation for ethnic Bulgarians thrown out of Turkey nearly one hundred years ago. “Friendship between Bulgaria and Turkey is for the …

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Turkey urges for EU “sincerity” over membership bid

Turkish Prime Minister Recep TayyipErdogan on Wednesday urged the European Union (EU) to show “sincerity” over Turkey’s bid to join the 27-nation bloc. Turkey has been resolute in the membership bid despite “unfair treatment often seen” in its relations with the EU, Erdogan said. “We have shown our commitment and …

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European Union opens 12th chapter on Turkish assession

Since 1999, when Turkey was given the status of candidate country, Turkey’s European Union assession process lived through ups and, since 2004-2005, down, EU enlargement commissioner Olli Rehn said on December 21. The country had reached stability in the recent past and the opening of negotiations on the environment chapter …

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