Sarkozy speaks out against Turkey
Erdogan says the two countries must “work together” through direct talks.
“We must not communicate via media statements,” Erdogan was quoted as telling Sarkozy, instead he said the leaders should “work together with direct talks”.
Erdogan also noted that France and Turkey, which is a member of Nato, cooperated broadly on economic, political and military issues, sources said.
Sarkozy, who replaced Jacques Chirac as president of France earlier in May, did not say what France would do about ongoing EU membership negotiations with Ankara which started in 2005.
But during his election campaign Sarkozy said he opposed Turkey’s attempt to join the EU.
‘Making headway’
He said he was campaigning to unblock the impasse on an EU constitution and hoped to have EY leaders accept a scaled-back, simplified treaty and do-away with the current draft constitution.
Some EU nations, such as France, Britain and the Netherlands are keen to drop more contentious parts of the draft such as its name, the post of an EU foreign minister and officially designated anthem and flag.
“We need to move forward and a simplified treaty is the way forward … Europe cannot remain at a standstill, we cannot remain in this relative paralysis … we have to find a way out of this impasse,” Sarkozy said.
The EU constitution, which French and Dutch voters rejected in referendums two years ago, was to have streamlined how the bloc makes decisions and bolster its role on the world stage.