EUROPEAN COUNCIL: THE LONG ROAD FROM ANKARA TO BRUSSELS.

The outline offer.

The debate on Turkey dominated the Summit from start to finish - with most of the time taken up with discussions of the wording for the conditions governing a firm EU offer to Ankara of a start to accession talks in 2005. EU leaders rapidly agreed the principle, and the date of October 3, but Turkey was reluctant to accept the conditions imposed - notably, recognition of Cyprus.

Dutch Prime Minister and Council President Jan Peter Balkenende announced the offer late on the evening of December 16, after he had won agreement for it during the opening dinner with the other EU leaders. "We can start negotiations with Turkey on October 3 on the basis of the European Commission recommendations", he said. He insisted on the open-ended character of the talks envisaged: "What is the goal? It is accession", he insisted. But, he added, in line with the European Commission's view, nothing could be guaranteed. So if membership proves not possible, Turkey "must be anchored in EU structures".

At this stage, he declined to give any indication of the nature of the conditions that would be attached to the offer, in respect of relations with Cyprus, safeguard clauses, or any other questions, because he was going straight into late-night talks directly with Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso talked up the agreement that Member States had reached, too: "Tonight the EU has opened its doors to Turkey with a balanced offer - an offer Turkey should be glad to accept", he said. He added that the offer was "fully compatible with the offer the European Commission made - an offer which was approved by the Turkish authorities".

Trouble over Cyprus.

Turkey was not, however, satisfied with the offer - and when the draft Summit Conclusions appeared early on December 17, it was evident where some of the problems lay. Mr Erdogan rejected the offer on Thursday night because he could not agree to a requirement for a de facto recognition of Cyprus - a provision that Turkey would initial, during the Summit, a Protocol extending Ankaras Customs Union to the ten new EU Member States.

A declaration included by the Dutch Presidency in a version of the conclusions drawn up overnight on Thursday stated that the EU owelcomes the initialling on 17 December 2004 by the Commission and Turkey of the Protocol extending the Ankara Agreement to all 25 Member Stateso. It also said it confirmed that Turkey will sign...