Turkey agrees to sign EU protocol

Kristine Nagy, spokesperson for the EU enlargement commission said yesterday that Ankara had agreed in writing to an extension of Turkey's customs agreement to Cyprus.The signing of the protocol will take place before October 3, the date given for the opening of EU accession talks for Turkey. Singing the protocol is a condition set that must be realized before accession talks can begin.Nagy said, "The protocol has to be signed before negotiations start, and we have assurances that that will indeed happen in good time before these accession negotiations start."Although Turkey will sign the protocol, it has not been seen as a move by Ankara to approve the formal recognition of Greek Cyprus.Â