EU envoys try to clear obstacles on Turkey
(AP)
Updated: 2005-09-29 17:24

Ambassadors from the 25 European Union nations met Thursday for the second time in four days to try to overcome differences that threaten to derail the start of Turkey's EU membership negotiations.

Austria is the most ardent opponent of Turkey's membership arguing the country is too big and unready to join the EU.

The membership talks that begin Monday will be a milestone for Europe and predominantly Muslim Turkey, which has been knocking on the EU's door since 1963. EU leaders agreed to open accession talks with Turkey last year.

Britain, which holds the EU presidency, was chairing the meeting trying to overcome Austrian demands that Turkey be given the option of lesser partnership rather than full membership, if it cannot live up to EU standards.

The ambassadors were tightlipped on arrival for the closed-door talks aiming to reach the necessary unanimous agreement on a joint negotiating position the EU needs, to start entry negotiations with Turkey, on Monday.

Failure would lead to a rupture in already tense relations between Ankara and Brussels and scuttle the planned ceremony by foreign ministers from the 25-nation bloc and Turkey in Luxembourg, meant to open those historic talks.

Austrian Chancellor Wolfgang Schuessel maintained his country's tough line on Turkey, increasing the chances that the issue will lead to emergency EU foreign ministers talks on the eve of the planned opening of negotiations with Ankara.

In an interview with two European newspapers, Schuessel said talks with Turkey should only start if separate membership talks with Croatia are also restarted.

Negotiations with Zagreb were frozen until it meets EU demands it fully cooperate in handing over a top war crimes suspect to the U.N. war crimes tribunal.

"If we trust Turkey to make further progress we should trust Croatia too," Schuessel told the Financial Times. "It is in Europe's interest to start negotiations with Croatia immediately."

Austria says its people — and many others across the bloc — do not support full membership for Turkey and is demanding that Ankara be given the option of privileged partnership rather than full membership. Turkey has already rejected anything less than full membership talks.

Austria is also linking the Turkey talks with its wish to see the EU do more to review Croatia's now-frozen efforts to join the bloc. Vienna argues that membership for its Balkan neighbor will help stabilize the region.

Britain, which holds the rotating EU presidency, is loath to link Croatia's EU bid to talks with Ankara. But Croatian Prime Minister Ivo Sanader said he would be in Luxembourg on Sunday to meet with EU officials to try to restart the talks, which were frozen in March.

Diplomats said Britain and other member states were unlikely to yield to demands to drop guarantees in the EU's negotiating mandate — which lays out the rules and a lose timeframe — that the goal of those talks is full membership.

The draft mandate states the "shared objective of the negotiations is accession," but adds they are "open-ended." It does not mention a partnership as an alternative option.

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