"Turkish delight
Talks on EU membership will be long, hard and necessary
The deal is done. After two days of extremely tough negotiations, the European Union has agreed terms for the opening next October of accession talks that, in ten years' time, could lead to Turkey's return to a continent over which it held regional sway for 500 years. Turkey would rejoin Europe not as an Ottoman conqueror but as the largest member of the EU, extending Europe's borders deep into the Middle East to Iraq, Iran and Syria. It is an historic and controversial step. For although Turkey is a founder member of Nato, a vital Western ally and a regional power that has sought to link its destiny to Europe for more than 40 years, membership would change not only the EU's strategic balance, but its culture, character and future. Despite domestic opposition, religious prejudices and enormous costs, EU leaders have taken the right decision. "
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