On December 11, after the European Union had accepted...

On December 11, after the European Union had accepted Turkey's application for membership, and in reply to those who asked him if the granting of candidate status to Ankara would have blocked Abdullah Ocalan's execution, Italian President of the European Commission Romano Prodi said: "I really believe that Turkey should renounce the death penalty now." On the same day, Italian Prime Minister Massimo D'Alema called for "coherence" on the issue, pointing out that the execution of Ocalan would be in "open conflict" with the process underway in Helsinki regarding Ankara's EU candidacy.