German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder on Wednesday criticized Turkey for a string of deficiencies in its democracy, urging the country to correct them if it wants to join the European Union. "Mistreatment by security forces, limits on freedom of expression and discrimination against women are incompatible with our common values," Schroeder said at a speech at Marmara University here after official talks in Ankara.The German leader also spoke of the "necessity of reform" in religious freedoms, specifically mentioning a meeting earlier in the day with the Istanbul-based spiritual leader of the Orthodox Church, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I. Turkey is under pressure to remove legal obstacles for non-Muslim religious foundations to fully exercise their property rights and to reopen a Greek Orthodox seminary in Istanbul closed more than 30 years ago. Schroeder, who was receiving an honorary doctorate from the university, called on Ankara to address problem areas before it begins accession talks with the European bloc on October 3 and urged it to swiftly implement reforms it has already adopted to achieve European norms.
Turkey "should not diminish its efforts," he said, adding: "Turkey has achieved many reforms so far but there is still much to do." Earlier Wednesday, Schroeder told reporters after meeting Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan that the EU is determined to open accession talks with Turkey on time.