A top European Union official said Monday that the bloc's upcoming decision on Turkey's suitability for membership would take into account the series of reforms that Turkey has carried out. Guenter Verheugen, the EU's commissioner in charge of enlargement, was in Turkey on his last visit before the commission is to release a crucial report on whether Turkey has made enough progress to meet the EU's membership criteria. The report is scheduled for release next month. Turkey hopes to get a starting date for membership negotiations at an EU summit in December. Verheugen's visit comes as a panel of former high-ranking EU officials recommended in Brussels that the EU forge ahead with membership talks as soon as Turkey meets minimum standards of democracy, but warned that that could take a decade. The panel was led by former Finnish President Martti Ahtisaari. --MORE 1350 Local Time 1050 GMT
