The Turkish Minister for Foreign Affairs, Ismail Cim,...

The Turkish Minister for Foreign Affairs, Ismail Cim, stated that he expected the Spanish Presidency of the European Union to "pursue the positive process" carried out by the Belgian Presidency on the issue of Turkey's accession to the EU.
Cim said this would involve a decision on when accession negotiations could be started. Questioned about Turkey's position on the death penalty, the Minister explained that the recent amendments of the Turkish Constitution confirmed the country's good faith and that Turkish public opinion was discussing the issue.
He also pointed to the possibility of a change whilst indicating that Turkey had not carried out the death penalty in twenty years.