Turkey hopes to start membership negotiations during the first half of next year, according to Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Speaking in the Council of Europe in Strasbourg on Wednesday (6 October) Mr Erdogan said, "We hope to bring a long-travelled road to its final lap with the initiation of accession negotiations in the first half of 2005".
Mr Erdogan also acknowledged that his country's membership of the EU would not be achieved overnight but criticised the Union for ...
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Lisbeth founded EUobserver in 2000 and is responsible to the Board for effective strategic leadership, planning and performance. After graduating from the Danish School of Media and Journalism, she worked as a journalist, analyst, and editor for Danish media.