EU AMBASSADORS’ DINNER HOSTED BY PRIME MINISTER ERDOGAN

Minister for EU Affairs and Chief Negotiator Egemen Bagis participated in the dinner hosted by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan in honor of EU ambassadors. 

Delivering a speech in the dinner held at the Prime Ministry’s official residence, the Prime Minister Erdogan reaffirmed Turkey’s commitment to the EU membership goal and expressed Turkey’s determination in speeding up the accession process.

Making reference to the current status of accession negotiations, Prime Minister declared Turkey’s readiness to open up 10 chapters in 12 months and 15 chapters in 18 months in case of the removal of political blockages. Articulating Turkey’s expectation for concrete steps and decisions from the EU, Prime Minister Erdogan stated that Turkey’s EU membership would be the best and the most effective response to racism and the clash of civilizations thesis. Touching upon Turkey’s strategic relations with rising Asia, Prime Minister emphasized that these relations are not considered as an alternative to EU membership, but that they would strengthen the relations between EU and Turkey.

Prime Minister Erdogan ended his speech by expressing his wish for 2013 to be a new year of progress in Turkey-EU relations.