Foreign Minister Paet: Smooth EU Accession Negotiations with Turkey are in Estonia’s Interests
01.03.2010
During his meeting in Tallinn with Turkish European Union Affairs Minister Egemen Bagis, Foreign Minister Urmas Paet confirmed Estonia’s support for Turkey continuing accession negotiations with the European Union. “Turkey has made progress in implementing reforms. They must continue to fulfil the responsibilities accepted in the course of accession negotiations, and it is important that negotiations do not cease,” stated the Estonian foreign minister.
Turkish European Union Affairs Minister and Chief Negotiator Bagis gave an overview of the most recent developments in implementing reforms for Turkey’s European integration. Foreign Minister Paet emphasised that all European nations that wish to join the European Union and fulfil the designated criteria must have the chance to do so. “The environment chapter that was most recently opened in Turkey-EU accession negotiations is a positive step towards membership,” stated Paet. He added that the normalisation of Turkey-Cyprus relations is also of key importance.
In talking about energy issues, Foreign Minister Paet noted Turkey’s importance to the European Union as an energy transit country and source of alternatives for increasing the EU’s energy security. “However, the energy chapter in accession negotiations is currently frozen. Intensifying energy-related co-operation is in the interests of the European Union as well as Turkey,” said Foreign Minister Paet.
Paet noted that Estonia and Turkey’s political, economic and cultural relations are developing successfully. “Hopefully the Istanbul-Tallinn flight route to be opened in the near future and the joint cultural projects taking place within the framework of Istanbul 2010 and Tallinn 2011 as European Capitals of Culture will establish Estonia-Turkey relations even further. Tourism relations were influenced positively by Turkey’s decision in the summer of 2008 to drop the visa requirement for Estonian citizens,” said Paet.
Paet and Bagis also discussed Estonia’s co-operation with Turkey within the framework of NATO. Turkey was the first NATO member from the Mediterranean region who guarded the airspace of Estonia and the other Baltic nations and did so for a longer period of time than most. “Estonia and Turkey also share the same views in terms of the formation of NATO’s new Strategic Concept,” said Foreign Minister Paet.
