EU should ease visa restrictions for Turkey: Gul

(VIENNA) - Turkish President Abdullah Gul called on the European Union Monday to liberalise its visa regime for Turkish citizens.

Arriving for a three-day state visit to Austria, Gul complained at a news conference with his Austrian counterpart Heinz Fischer that the EU had been talking to Russia and Ukraine about easing visa restrictions, but not to Turkey.

"That's something that discredits not Turkey but the European Union," Gul said.

Turkey had joined the EU customs union in 1995, but Turkish businessmen still found it difficult to get EU visas and could not, for example, attend business fairs to sell goods their companies made, the Turkish head of state complained.

Last November, the EU and Ukraine agreed on a "road map" for the efforts Kiev must make to win the right for its citizens to travel to the 27-nation bloc without a visa.

And Brussels is in similar talks with Russia about the issue.

Austria and Turkey entertain deep and long-standing economic ties, but relations have been somewhat soured in recent years by the reservations that Vienna has about Turkey's bid to join the EU.

President Fischer said Austrian was interested in fair EU accession talks with Turkey.

Nevertheless, "these are difficult negotiations, and no-one, including the Turkish side, can foresee the outcome,' Fischer said.

Turkey opened accession talks with the EU in 2005. However, out of the 35 policy chapters that candidate countries must negotiate, Turkey has opened talks on only 13.

Eight chapters remain frozen as a sanction to Turkey's refusal to open its ports to Greek Cypriot vessels under a trade pact with the EU, with France blocking several others in line with its vocal opposition to Turkey's accession.

Gul suggested the EU as a whole and Austria in particular would benefit if Turkey with its fast-growing economy, were allowed to join.

"Overall, the cake will become bigger," the Turkish president suggested.