Turkey's prime minister yesterday called the EU decision to partially freeze talks with his country a "great injustice," while the British prime minister sought to reassure Turkey, saying he supported direct flights to the breakaway Turkish Cypriot state.
EU leaders agreed to partially freeze Turkey's membership talks at a summit in Brussels on Thursday owing to Ankara's refusal to open ports and airports to EU member Cyprus, whose government Turkey does not recognize.
Turkey insists it would only open ports and airports once the isolation of the Turkish Cypriot state ends. Only Ankara recognizes the self-declared republic.
Asked about Britain's position on starting direct flights to the Turkish-Cypriot airport of Ercan, Blair said: "This is something I would like to do."
Blair said British officials were consulting international aviation rules to see if direct flights were possible.
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan strongly criticized the EU decision and called on the bloc to allow direct trade with the Turkish Cypriot state "without linking the issue to any conditions."
"The EU Council decision is a great injustice for Turkey," Erdogan said. "Turkish-EU relations which have a history of more than 40 years have been reduced to side issues like port openings," Erdogan said.
Still, Erdogan vowed to continue a reform process aimed at improving human rights, as well as the country's legal, economic and social systems to meet EU standards.
In a last minute diplomatic effort, Turkey had proposed to Greek Cypriots that both countries open their ports and airports, including Ercan, but Cyprus firmly rejected the proposal while the EU said it fell short of Turkey's obligations to meet EU demands. It called on Turkey to recognize EU member Cyprus.
However, Blair said that he noticed "a more positive atmosphere," about Turkey following the Turkish proposal.
Blair yesterday said that Turkey's strategic location makes it an important player for stability in the Middle East and the future of Europe.
"European Union membership for Turkey is not just important to Turkey itself, in my view, it is of fundamental importance to the future of Europe," Blair said.
"Turkey is placed right between the Middle East and Europe and if we needed no other reminder of the strategic importance of Turkey to the European Union, it is what is happening in the Middle East today," he said.
Blair said predominantly Muslim Turkey could play a key role in stabilizing the Middle East and could be an asset for the future of Europe, and expressed hope that negotiations on other membership chapters that haven't been frozen can resume before the end of the year.
"I think the idea of people coming together from different faiths, different backgrounds around concepts of tolerance and respect for each other and openness to the world, this is absolutely where the future is," Blair said.
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