§ Andrew MackinlayTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to his answer of 24 March 2004,Official Report, columns 900–01W, on Cyprus, for what reasons it was not Government policy that the ending of Turkish occupation of Cyprus territory should be a precondition for the opening of Turkey's EU accession negotiations; and if he will make a statement. [165073]
§ Mr. MacShaneThe Copenhagen European Council in 1993 set out the criteria which candidates for EU membership need to satisfy before accession. These demanded that "the candidate country has achieved stability of institutions guaranteeing democracy, the rule of law, human rights and respect for and protection of minorities, the existence of a functioning market economy as well as the capacity to cope with competitive pressure and market forces within the Union."
The 2003 Accession Partnership between the EU and Turkey called on Turkey to "strongly support efforts to find a comprehensive settlement of the Cyprus problem through the continuation of the United Nations Secretary General's mission of good offices and of negotiations on the basis of his proposals." This Government welcomes the Turkish Government's commitment to finding a settlement on the basis of the UN proposals.