The head of the delegation for negotiations with the EU, Minister of State of Turkey Egemen Bagysh, said that the referendum planned for September 12th this year will help Turkey reach European standards, TRT reports.
Bagysh met the vice-premier and head of the Foreign Ministry of Belgium, Steven Vanackere, in Istanbul. At a joint press-conference Bagysh noted that the package of constitutional amendments, which will be put to a public vote, has points easing the correspondence of Turkey to EU standards.
Answering the question of privileged partnership, Bagysh said that the EU has no alternate forms of membership. He said that such a partnership would be an insult for Turkey. Bagysh emphasized that no other country has officially been offered it.
Steven Vanackere said that they view Turkey as a strategic partner, pointing out that the structure of the EU has no such notion as a privileged partner. He added that they will support every democratic step towards joining EU.
