The European Council decided on Thursday night in Brussels to start Turkey's accession talks as of October 3, 2005.  

Speaking to a press conference after Thursday's prolonged meeting on the issue, Dutch Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende said this is an "important" decision taken by the European Union (EU) leaders.

Balkenende, whose country holds the rotating EU presidency, said he was happy that the conclusion on the tough issue could be drawn at the meeting.

However, he said there is no guarantee for the outcome of the accession negotiations as indicated by the proposal reports presented by the European Commission, hinting that opening the talks does not naturally lead to the full membership.

According to the Dutch prime minister, the EU leaders would meet Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Friday to discuss the relevant issues some EU member states are concerned, like the Cyprus question.

European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso told the press conference that he was glad that the EU "opens its door" to Turkey and congratulated the EU leaders on having common position on the issue.

Barroso, who has always adhered to opening the accession talks with Turkey, stressed that the "final goal" for the talks is EU "membership."

According to Balkenende, Thursday's meeting did not touch upon the timing for signing the accession treaty with Romania and Bulgaria, neither the date for opening the accession talks with Croatia.

Journalists from Turkey told Xinhua that many citizens of Turkey were watching television about the EU summit and eager to know the outcome.

Turkey's intention to join the EU dates back to 1963, and it was until 1999 that Turkey finally sealed the candidacy for the EU membership.

However, due to considerable political, economic and cultural gap with the EU, Turkey has been faced uphill battle for the membership of the 25-member bloc.

In October this year, the EU's executive arm submitted a proposal to start the accession talks with Turkey, but it did not notify a date for opening the talks.

(Xinhua News Agency December 17, 2004)