Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul said on Saturday he was confident that talks on joining the European Union would start on time in October despite French criticism of Ankara's refusal to recognise Cyprus, Reuters reported. Turkey is scheduled to start EU entry talks on Oct. 3, but France wants Ankara to recognise Cyprus first. French President Jacques Chirac on Friday stepped up his criticism of Turkey's refusal to recognise the EU member state. In his first official reaction to Chirac's remarks, Gul said Turkey had done all that was needed to allow the talks to begin. "The negotiations will begin (on time). EU leaders have enough foresight not to undermine strategic policies ... due to some problems arising from domestic politics today," the state Anatolian news agency quoted Gul as saying. European public opinion, especially in France, is largely opposed to admitting Turkey, a large, relatively poor and overwhelmingly Muslim country, into the EU. Turkey is not seen joining the 25-member bloc before 2015 at the earliest. --More 2146 Local Time 1846 GMT
