Sarkozy, invited to Turkey by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan during a meeting in Paris on Wednesday, said he may visit after November, the Anatolia news agency reported. But the French leader refused to change his stance towards Turkey's EU membership, Anatolia said, reporting that the two sides repeated their known positions during the talks. But despite their disagreements, Sarkozy and Erdoğan said they were committed to improving bilateral ties between Turkey and France. The two sides also appeared to disagree on the issue of sanctions against Iran, but Sarkozy announced full backing for Turkey's fight against terrorism.
Erdoğan traveled to the French capital in a bid to boost diplomatic ties and enhance cooperation in the fields of economy, energy and transportation between the two countries.
Ahead of his meeting with the French president, Erdoğan had expressed hope about the change in the position of France against Turkey’s bid to become a full EU member. “I am not giving way to despair. I think Sarkozy will reconsider his approach [toward Turkey’s bid],” Erdoğan told reporters. “Turkey has fulfilled more Copenhagen and Maastricht criteria than some EU member countries,” he added. France is a strong opponent of Turkey’s full membership in the union. The Turkish prime minister was accompanied by Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu, Egemen Bağış, state minister and chief negotiator for EU talks, Culture and Tourism Minister Ertuğrul Günay and State Minister Zafer Çağlayan during his visit. The French president welcomed Erdoğan at the Elysée Palace. The two had a meeting at the palace that lasted almost one hour. Davutoğlu and his French counterpart, Bernard Kouchner, along with Bağış and the French secretary of state for European affairs, Pierre Lellouche, were also present during the meeting. Erdoğan and Sarkozy discussed bilateral ties between Turkey and France. Erdoğan later met with the CEOs of prominent French companies. The French Foreign Ministry announced that Erdoğan and Sarkozy met in order to boost economic ties between Turkey and France and to discuss new cooperative projects between the two countries in the fields of transportation, energy and infrastructure. The Turkish prime minister and the French president were also expected to touch on international issues -- such as Afghanistan, the Middle East and Iran -- during their meeting.
