‘EU leaders agree to open Turkey’s talks’

Manning, speaking at a panel in Washington, said some EU countries were not so pleased about Turkey’s EU membership process, but, there was a positive recommendation from the commission, the Anatolia news agency reported.

"All of us in the EU have agreed upon starting negotiations with Turkey. I believe it is a very positive development," Manning was quoted as saying by the agency. He added he believed the upcoming negotiation process would bring Turkey full accession in time.

EU leaders are expected to decide in a December summit whether to launch entry talks with Ankara based on the commission’s recomendation issued early this month.

Manning, referring to Britain’s strong support for Ankara’s EU bid, said Britain had worked hard for a consensus among the member states on Turkey’s talks. "As you know, now we have positive findings for the start of negotiations," he said refering to the commission’s progress report.

The important point was the start of negotiations despite Turkey’s membership process being open-ended, Manning said. He said Britain believed Turkey’s fulfilment of the membership criteria would be in the interests of both Turkey and the EU: "We believe it will be an important signal of Europe’s relations with its Islamic neighbors," he added.

The British diplomat called Turkey’s EU membership "a major conceptual leap" for both sides. "I believe we have to handle this issue with an acceleration that the EU can cope with," he continued.

French Foreign Minister Michel Barnier, speaking at a conference in the Middle East, said EU criteria was not based on religion and thus there was no barrier before Turkey’s EU bid because of its Muslim identity.

Barnier, speaking at a university in Tel Aviv, said Turkey would become a member if it fulfilled EU criteria. "The EU is not a religious club: Turkey is a secular country. There are no religious criteria for any country to join the EU," he was quoted as saying by the agency.