"The leftist Die Tageszeitung in Berlin also takes up the issue of the European Union, criticizing German EU commissioner Guenter Verheugen for his wishy-washy statements about future membership for Turkey. Earlier, Verheugen served as one of Ankara's greatest supporters in Brussels, arguing prominently for full Turkish membership. These days, however, Verheugen has been saying that the expected results of negotiations with Turkey for its membership should remain 'open.' Verheugen's successor as EU expansion commissioner, Olli Rehn, is now saying that Turkey's record on human rights, prison conditions and its legal system will be more closely scrutinized. "After two failed constitutional referenda and a failed EU summit, the Union is now waffling on the issue again," the paper warns. Since 1963, the EU has always used the possibility of eventual Turkish EU membership as a way of reining in Ankara's foreign policy. But in its last progress report, the European Commission said those days were over. Instead, Turkey should be given clear conditions in exchange for real prospects of joining the EU. Those negotiations are supposed to start on Oct. 3. "Turkey has held up its end of the bargain," and Europe must do the same, the paper warns. It then criticizes Verheugen for his new critical undertones and dismisses the politician as a chameleon whose loyalties change with the political climate."
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