Gul calls on France not to block Turkey's bid for EU membership

Turkish President Abdullah Gul asked his French counterpart President Francois Hollande Monday not to block Turkey's bid for a European Union membership.

During a joint press conference, President Gul said "We welcome the positive stance Hollande has adopted for the past few years. But the negotiation process does not mean full membership." 

President Gul added that the negotiation process is an adaptation process, expressing his hope that a political blockage will not take place.  France's Hollande began an official visit to Turkey on Monday at a time when both countries are weathering stormy political climates.  

Hollande's trip is the first to Turkey by a sitting French president for 22 years.  

His visit began with the laying of a wreath at the mausoleum of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, Turkey's founder, in Ankara, followed by a welcome ceremony at the presidential palace, Cankaya, hosted by Turkish President Abdullah Gul.  

Relations between Ankara and Paris became strained during Nicholas Sarkozy's presidency, when France tried to block Turkey's European Union membership negotiations.  

Ties between Ankara and Paris were further eroded when France's parliament passed a law in December 2011 making it a crime to deny that the killings of Armenians during World War I constituted genocide - a law that was strongly opposed by Turkey.  

France's Constitutional Council later ruled that the law violated the country's constitution and so it was rescinded.  

Hollande is expected to conclude his two-day trip in Istanbul - Turkey's largest city.


REUTERS/LBCI