EU says Turkey took positive steps towards membership, but concerns remain

BRUSSELS, Oct 8 (KUNA) -- EU Enlargement Commissioner Stefan Fule Wednesday said Turkey has taken a number of positive steps over the past year such as the settlement process aimed at addressing the Kurdish issues and the 2013 democratisation package on its path to EU membership.
Presenting the 2014 Enlargement Package to the European Parliamentآ’s Foreign Affairs Committee here today he also noted the entry into force of the illegal immigrants readmission agreement, the launch of the visa liberalisation dialogue and the "admirable efforts of the Turkish authorities and the Turkish people to cope with over one million Syrian refugees." "However, over the past months, there have also been developments which raised the European Union's concerns. Proposals to restrict freedom of expression were adopted such as the changes to the internet law and blanket bans on Twitter and Youtube," he said.
"Further reform efforts are still needed, in particular because the Criminal Code and Anti-terror legislation are still being used to limit freedom of expression. The independence and the efficiency of the judiciary should also be strengthened," he said.
"This being said, Turkey and the European Union's futures are inevitably tied together. Turkey is a strategic partner for the European Union, not least in economic and trade relations. Its location also underlines the importance of further cooperation in the areas of migration policy and energy security. It is therefore paramount that accession negotiaons remain the main engine of our relations," he said.
EU-Turkey membership negotiations were opened in October 2005.
Meanwhile, the European Commission Wednesday adopted a set of annual reports to assess the progress made over the past year by the countries wishing to join the EU in the Western Balkans and by Turkey, and the challenges ahead.
The report says that Montenegro has taken further steps in accession negotiations. Implementation of rule of law reforms has started. Tangible results on the ground are now needed and will be key to determining the overall pace of the accession negotiations, it said.
On Serbia, it said, the country needs to deliver on its reform priorities in a sustained manner as the pace of negotiations will depend on progress in key areas, notably on rule of law and the normalisation process with Kosovo.
New momentum needs to be generated in the dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina in order to tackle key outstanding issues and open a new phase in the normalisation of relations.
The EU accession process with Macedonia is at an impasse. Action is needed to reverse recent backsliding, notably as regards freedom of expression and of the media and the independence of the judiciary, it said.
Albania was granted candidate status in June as recognition for its reform efforts and progress made in meeting the required conditionality. The country needs to build on and consolidate the reform momentum and focus its efforts on tackling its EU-integration challenges in a sustainable and inclusive way, said the report.
Bosnia and Herzegovina remains at a standstill on its European integration path. Following the October general elections, it will be essential for the country to tackle urgent socio-economic reforms and to progress on its European agenda, it noted.
The initialling of a Stabilisation and Association Agreement with Kosovo in July is a major milestone in EU-Kosovo relations. Now Kosovo needs to deliver on key reforms, in particular the rule of law, it said. (end) nk.mt