"Moratinos: Turkey doesn`t want “CLUB MED”
French President Nicolas Sarkozy’s idea of a Mediterranean Union for
countries like Turkey – which he does not want admitted to the European Union – has picked up support from Spain, whose own Euro- Mediterranean partnership has floundered, but is getting the cold shoulder in Turkey. Spain’s Foreign Minister Miguel Angel Moratinos wrote in El Pais, a prominent Spanish daily newspaper: “The moment has arrived ... to build a real geopolitical space through the establishment of a Mediterranean Union,” which already has been derided in Turkish newspapers as a second-class “Club Med.” It would include some EU countries bordering the Mediterranean and have its own council of heads of state and government to set strategic policies, a separate commission, parliament and bank, Moratinos said. “The organisation would help the region tackle challenges ranging from environmental issues to immigration.” But a senior Turkish diplomat who did not want to be named told the Turkish Daily News, “We never see the Mediterranean Union plan as an alternative to Turkey’s EU accession. Turkey is proceeding on the path for full membership since 1999,” the year Ankara gained candidacy status. Sarkozy came up with the idea while running for president and it may be on the agenda at an EU Summit in December."
..:: ABHABER.COM ::.. Moratinos: Turkey doesn`t want “CLUB MED”
