Turkish FM Davutoğlu to focus on EU bid and Cyprus on visit to Austria

Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu will begin an official visit to Austria Thursday for talks focusing on Turkey’s EU bid and Cyprus, his ministry said Wednesday.

During Davutoglu’s visit, Turkish-Austrian bilateral relations, Turkey’s EU accession process and Cyprus will be discussed, alongside a range of international issues, a statement from the ministry read.

The visit comes after a period of slow progress in Turkey’s bid for full membership in the European Union, an aspiration Austria stands against, much like France and Germany.

Turkey’s negotiation process with the EU bloc faces deadlock over its refusal to implement a customs union with the Greek part of Cyprus, a EU member since 2004.

Turkey has threatened to freeze relations with the EU when Cyprus, a divided Mediterranean island, takes over the rotating presidency of the 27-nation bloc in July 2012.

23.03.2012
SOURCE: CUMHURIYET ENGLISH