"Historic breakthrough: way clear for Turkey to join EU
By Stephen Castle in Brussels
18 December 2004
Turkey's 41-year-wait to begin talks about joining the European Union ended yesterday when it accepted an historic offer to launch EU membership negotiations next year. But tough conditions were set.
After a day of frantic negotiation and brinkmanship, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the Turkish Prime Minister, agreed to start negotiations after an offer hailed as a gesture to the Islamic world. Detailed discussion on membership, which many believed could never happen, will start on 3 October next year, under the British presidency of the EU."
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