Turkey (Hansard, 28 November 2002)

§ Mr. Ben Chapman
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on progress towards Turkey's accession to the EU. [83420]

§ Mr. MacShane
The European Commission's 2002 Regular Report on Turkey described the progress that Turkey has made towards complying with the Copenhagen political criteria, which are a precondition for opening accession negotiations. The Brussels European Council welcomed the important reforms undertaken by the Turkish Government, and said that Turkey's progress had brought forward the prospect of opening accession negotiations. HMG is a strong supporter of Turkey's EU candidature and we look forward to the opening of accession negotiations with Turkey as soon as possible and in accordance with the conditions which all candidates must meet.

§ Mr. Wiggin
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with President Erdogan of Turkey since his election to the presidency of Turkey. [83884]

§ Mr. MacShane
My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary met Recep Tayyip Erdogan, leader of the Justice and Development Party (AKP), on 20 November. They discussed the AKP's plans for government and their commitment to reform, particularly in the area of human rights. The Foreign Secretary welcomed the new Turkish Government's ambitious programme and underlined the UK's strong support for Turkey's EU candidature and for the role Turkey played in the wider world. The Foreign Secretary also stressed that there was now a unique opportunity ahead of the Copenhagen Summit in406W December to make progress over European Defence issues, and to resolve the problem of Cyprus on the basis of the UN Secretary-General's recent comprehensive proposals.
The Foreign Secretary will be travelling to Turkey on 3–4 December to continue these discussions with the new Turkish Government.

§ Mr. Wiggin
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with the Government of Turkey regarding the number of Turkish Kurd asylum seekers illegally entering the United Kingdom. [83886]

§ Mr. MacShane
My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary has not raised immigration with the new Turkish Government. However, discussions between UK and Turkish officials have been taking place for some time on asylum and immigration matters.