Turkey won't accept anything less than full European Union membership, a senior Turkish official said Saturday, after Turkish newspapers printed details of a French proposal to offer Turkey a "privileged partnership" instead. Turkish newspapers claimed this week that the head of a French think-tank had visited Turkey to discuss the idea of a privileged partnership which has been floated in France and elsewhere as an alternative to admitting Turkey as a full member, AP reported. Turkish membership is unpopular among the French and a large chunk of France plans to vote "No" in a May 29 referendum on a landmark constitution. The constitution that has become a vehicle for the French to express their discontent over issues such as admitting predominantly Muslim Turkey to the EU. Turkish Foreign Ministry Spokesman Namik Tan released a statement Saturday saying it was "impossible for Turkey to accept any formula or option ... other than Turkey's full-membership goal, no matter which name it is given." "The main axis for Turkish-EU relations is based on the aim of achieving full membership of the European Union," Tan said. --More 2155 Local Time 1855 GMT
