Turkey shocked by Franco-German election rhetoric[fr][de] 

Speaking at a gathering of young conservatives on 10 May, Merkel said it does not make sense for the EU to continuously expand if it leaves the Union unable to operate. 

She added that she would prefer Turkey to receive a privileged partnership from the EU, rather than full membership, echoing recent comments made by French President Nicolas Sarkozy at the launch of his EU election campaign (EurActiv 8/05/09). 

At the same meeting, Sarkozy told German newspaper Bild am Sonntag: "We need a well-organised Europe [...] That means we cannot expand without borders. We shouldn't make any empty promises to Turkey." 

As an alternative, Sarkozy proposed to create a large joint economic area, noting that a similar concept might work to bind Russia closer to the EU. 

The Turkish press expressed widespread dismay at the statements, made by the two EU leaders during a young CDU (Christian-Democrats) activists' event. The daily Milliyet wrote that "Merkel has officially shocked Turkey". 

Before being elected president in May 2007, Sarkozy frequently spoke out against Turkey's EU accession, but softened his stance after his election (EurActiv 28/08/07). In the case of Germany, Merkel's unfavourable view of Ankara's accession is tempered by the more positive attitude of her foreign minister and Social Democratic coalition partner Frank-Walter Steinmeier. 

The French press, for its part, interpreted Merkel's statements as a veiled attack on the UK Conservative party. "Those who refuse the Lisbon Treaty - which would allow us to work better and to take aboard new members - but who still talk about enlargement, we refuse to shake their hand," the AFP agency quoted Merkel as saying. 

The agency quotes an unidentified member of the French government as saying that Merkel was referring to the Conservative party led by David Cameron. The Eurosceptic tone adopted by the British Conservatives, who decided to leave the centre-right European People's Party, is "worrying" Paris and Berlin, the source added.