Merkel reassures Turkish premier on EU

May 26, 2006, 17:32 GMT

Berlin - German Chancellor Angela Merkel Friday reassured Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan that she would not stand in the way of Ankara's negotiations on European Union membership.

Germany would follow the entry talks to ensure that all criteria are fulfilled and would respect all agreements, she said after talks between the two leaders in Berlin.

During her election campaign last year Merkel upset Ankara by opposing its application to join the EU, proposing instead a 'privileged partnership' without the full benefits of membership.

However, she went along with the EU's decision last October to open membership negotiations with Turkey - a process that could take a decade or more.

Germany is home to the largest Turkish community in Europe, with 2.5 million Turks living in Europe's biggest and wealthiest country, but resentment against Islam has been growing lately.

The two leaders said language was the key to integration of Germany's Turkish community, many of whom have a poor command of German.

Merkel and Erdogan praised the good relations between their countries, particularly in the economics sector. Germany is Turkey's most important trading partner, with bilateral trade last year reaching 21 billion euros (26.8 billion dollars).

The two leaders also spoke at the opening of a German-Turkish economic forum attended by around 1,400 representatives from industry, politics and social groups.

Merkel said she planned to visit Turkey in October at the head of a business delegation. Turkey would also be the partner country at next year's Hanover trade fair, she said.

Last Friday, European Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn warned Turkey that entry talks were headed for trouble over the Muslim country's slow pace of reform.

Warning of a 'sense of urgency,' Rehn said it was imperative that Turkey 'enhanced the pace of reform' in areas such as human rights, freedom of expression and religious freedoms.

EU diplomats have warned in recent months that Turkey is backtracking on promised reforms.

The EU is particularly worried the Turkish parliament's failure to ratify the Ankara protocol under which Turkey vowed to extend its customs agreement with the EU to all ten member states who joined in May 2004.

A survey sponsored by the European Commission at the end of last year showed 55 per cent of EU citizens opposed to Turkish membership of the EU.