EGEMEN BAGIS, TURKEY'S FIRST EVER MINISTER FOR EU AFFAIRS

Egemen Bagis has been appointed as the Minister for EU Affairs and Chief Negotiator in the 61st government. Egemen Bagis is the first Minister for European Union Affairs in the history of Turkish Republic. He made a statement regarding the new term.

Minister for European Union Affairs and Chief Negotiator Egemen Bagis said:

"I am deeply honoured to continue to carry out the post of Minister for European Union Affairs in the 61st government term, which was bestowed upon me by the Prime Minister Erdogan with the approval of the President Gul.

The recent establishment of an exclusive Ministry for European Union Affairs by our Government clearly demonstrates our determination to carry forward the EU accession process. As another indication of this determination, Minister for European Union Affairs, in addition to being the Chief Negotiator, has also been designated as the "Head of the Delegation for Negotiations", in accordance with the Prime Ministry Circular No 2011/7, issued in the Official Gazette dated 8 July, 2011. As a result, the coordination of accession negotiations with the EU is brought under the competence of a single institution, namely the Ministry for EU Affairs.

We are now entering a very important period to crown this determination with EU membership. We have no doubt that our citizens will observe the positive results of "AK Party's mastership term" in the EU accession process, as in every area. Turkey and the EU have self-confidence, means and capability to finalize this process successfully. We hope that our friends in the EU will recognize our determination and adopt a more reasonable, stable and objective attitude towards Turkey.

Turkey-EU relations are too important and strategic to evaluate in terms of unjustified obstacles or disputes. The best course of action for both parties is to set aside prejudices to achieve the best outcome in this process.

We have no doubts that Turkey's future lies in the EU membership. Neither should anybody doubt that the future of the EU also lies in Turkey's membership.

I wholeheartedly believe that in the new term, doubts will be replaced by trust; and fears will give way to self-confidence, and all NGOs, business world, academic circles, media and particularly the opposition parties will maintain and strengthen their support in the EU accession process, which we consider as a process of democratization, development and transparency.

I would like to express my gratitude to our Ministers of Foreign Affairs who had led the delegation for negotiations with great commitment and success to this day, and especially to Prof. Dr. Ahmet Davutoglu, the current Minister of Foreign Affairs and to the staff of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. I would like to state that in the new term, as the Ministry for European Union Affairs, we will be working in coordination and harmony with other Ministries under the leadership and instructions of our Prime Minister."