"No half measures, Turkey tells EU
AFP
December 16, 2004
TURKISH Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan turned up the heat on the European Union yesterday, insisting his nation deserved full membership and warning that anything less would be a 'historic mistake'.
In a speech to his party that was frequently interrupted by ovations, Mr Erdogan put the onus squarely on the 25-nation EU ahead of tomorrow's summit in Brussels.
He said Turkey, Europe's biggest Muslim nation, had met all criteria required to start membership talks, particularly in the areas of human rights and political reform. 'We, as a country, have done what we had to do to start membership talks,' he told members of his Justice and Development Party. 'The rest is the responsibility of the EU.' "
More:The Australian: No half measures, Turkey tells EU [December 16, 2004]
