06 09 05 - Barroso separates adhesion from Turkey of the question of the Armenian genocide

7/7 - Jean Eckian www.inhomage.com
Brussels - sept 5, 2006

The president of the European Commission, Jose-Manuel Barroso, refused Monday to force Turkey to recognize the Armenian genocide before his possible adhesion with European Union. "This kind of examination must
be voluntary. It cannot be imposed ", declared Monday the owner of European executive. "One should not pose that like an additional condition", insisted Manuel Barroso by underlining the "difficulty"
and "time" necessary to the control of this kind of debate. "How long the catholic church did put to recognize the reality of the enquiry ?
How long the colonial powers did they put to recognize the colonial crimes? ", he pled. Jose-Manuel Barroso rejected any purely geographical definition of the Union. "There is no geographical
consensus on the borders of the Union. Let us seek a political consensus rather, because is with us to decide ", but" one should not say ' non' to these countries which testify to a will of Europe ", he still pled.

For the president of European executive, European Union must accept all the countries which fill the criteria fixed at their adhesion "and which represents a step ahead, an added value, for European integration", he concluded, while admitting that the question of the accession of Turkey was one "of most difficult at the present time in
Europe". An accession of Turkey to the European Union would make it possible, according to him, to avoid importing instability into Europe.

V.V