Turkey called EU declaration “unfair”

Turkey said an EU declaration urging it to recognize Cyprus contains 'some unfair approaches' and does not conform with the 'spirit of cooperation' between the two parties.

"This declaration contains some unfair approaches and some new elements that do not conform to the traditional spirit of cooperation that has been continuing between Turkey and the EU for more than 40 years," he said.

Yesterday, the EU agreed, ahead of accession talks scheduled for Oct 3, that Turkey recognize the Cypriot government at some point before it actually joins the bloc, according to BBC News.

Turkey says it will continue to recognize only the breakaway Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) until a solution is found to the island's three-decade division between its Turkish and Greek communities, Forbes reports.

Tan said unilateral pressure by the EU 'could weaken the UN-sponsored settlement process in Cyprus' and accused Brussels of failing to deliver on promises of economic aid to the Turkish Cypriots for their 'yes' vote in an April 2004 referendum on a UN-drafted reunification plan.

Turkish officials say the EU's efforts to end the isolation of the Turkish Cypriots have been blocked by Cyprus, a member of the EU since May 2004.

Turkey accuses the Greek Cypriots of using their EU membership as leverage to block Ankara's own accession aspirations and extract concessions on Cyprus.

A spokesman for the EU's UK presidency said on Wednesday that only one country, Austria, still had objections to the proposed framework, and that he was confident the problem could be resolved in time.

Austria has long argued that the framework should mention the possibility that Turkey will ultimately be offered a "privileged partnership" rather than full membership.