"Mutual mistrust between Turkey and the EU must be overcome for discussion to progress
Outstanding dilemmas mean suspicions held by both sides may deepen after December 17
By Burak Bekdil - Kathimerini English Edition
A cartoon in a newspaper depicts Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan walking side by side with Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul, both men with sullen faces, and Mr Erdogan complaining to Mr Gul of a fresh EU condition for the start of EU entry talks: �Now they say we must shave off our moustaches!� The cartoon echoes an emerging change in the Turkish perception of what the start of accession talks will really mean.
Blame it on false publicity! Mr Erdogan's party apparatus, along with the mainstream press, has long been brainwashing the Turks that December 17 will mean an imminent victory. The date would mark the beginning of a Midas touch on a country that has been zigzagging between the East and the West for several decades. The wrangling over all three draft summit statements on Turkish candidacy has visibly soured the Turks' appetite for membership."
More:ekathimerini.com | Mutual mistrust between Turkey and the EU must be overcome for discussion to progress
