Germany's foreign minister said Tuesday that spurning Turkey's efforts to join the European Union would have "negative consequences" for the continent's security. Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer's warning came a day after Germany's conservative opposition presented a platform for likely September elections in which it rejected Turkish EU membership. "It shows considerable shortsightedness not to see what significance firmly anchoring Turkey (in Europe) has and what significance the modernization of this great Islamic country has," Fischer said after meeting EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn. "Given that promises have been made for 43 years, all those who think we could slam the door in Turkey's face today must be clear what negative consequences that would have for European security," Fischer was quoted as saying by The Associated Press. He added that the continent's security "today is defined above all in our regional neighborhood _ the Near and Middle East."
