Merkel Talks Tough

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who welcomed Merkel in Ankara, meanwhile countered that compliance would depend on the EU delivering on its pledge to ease the international isolation of Cyprus's breakaway Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC).

"We are absolutely not in favor of opening our air and sea ports (to Cypriot use) if the isolation (of the TRNC) is not lifted," Erdogan said.

The divided Mediterranean island is proving to be one of the biggest obstacles in Ankara's talks for membership in the EU only one year after they began amid widespread skepticism about whether the overwhelmingly Muslim country of 73 million has a place in Europe.

Turkey, despite a customs union agreement with the bloc, refuses to open its ports to EU-member Cyprus, which it does not recognize, triggering warnings from Brussels that Ankara's failure to comply could result in the suspension of accession talks.

Nov. 8 deadline

The row has heated up ahead of a crucial annual report that the European Commission will issue on Nov. 8 on Turkey's progress in the talks.

"The Ankara protocol must be implemented," Merkel said, referring to an agreement that extends the customs union between Turkey and the EU to the 10 countries that joined the bloc in May 2004, including Cyprus. Turkey signed the protocol in July 2005, but says Cypriot vessels will remain barred from Turkish facilities unless the EU honors its promise to ease trade restrictions on the TRNC, which Ankara alone recognizes.

"It is standing before us as a pre-condition," the chancellor added. "This issue must be resolved for the continuation of (membership) talks."

The TRNC won pledges of financial aid and direct trade from the EU when Turkish Cypriots overwhelmingly voted in favor of a UN settlement plan in April 2004. The plan was killed off when the Greek Cypriots rejected it in a simultaneous referendum.

After overcoming opposition from the Cypriot government, Brussels unblocked financial aid for Turkish Cypriots but there has been no progress on the trade package.

Merkel optimistic

Merkel was nonetheless optimistic that the row over the Ankara protocol would be resolved through a proposal drawn up by Finland, which currently holds the rotating EU presidency. The proposal reportedly calls for placing a TRNC port under EU supervision while Turkey would open some ports and airports to Greek Cypriots.

"I see that this proposal was welcomed positively by the Turkish side," she said. "I hope we are about to resolve a difficult problem."

Erdogan asked Germany, which will take over the six-month EU presidency on Jan. 1, to support Ankara in the membership talks, which are also clouded by concerns over the slowing pace of democratic reforms in Turkey. The German government, however, has stressed that the outcome of the negotiations remains "open" and guarantees nothing.

After official talks in Ankara on Thursday, Merkel will meet Jewish, Muslim and Christian leaders -- including Patriarch Bartholomew I, spiritual leader of the world's 250 million Greek Orthodox believers -- in Istanbul on Friday. She will also attend a meeting with Turkish and German business leaders.

Germany is Turkey's No. 1 trade partners, with volume between the two standing at $23 billion (18 billion euros) in 2005.