Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan will meet leaders of the European Parliament on Sept. 23 to discuss his country's bid for European Union membership, a spokesman for the EU legislature said on Friday. The highly unusual meeting, two weeks before the executive European Commission gives its Oct. 6 verdict on whether Turkey has met the criteria on democracy, human and minority rights and the rule of law to start accession talks, will give Erdogan an opportunity to try to convince sceptics in the assembly. He will hold a closed-door working session with the conference of presidents of parliamentary groups but will not address the full assembly, a privilege which spokesman Jose Manuel Liberato said was reserved for heads of state.
