ANKARA
The European Union should accelerate Turkey's EU membership process, as Turkey has waited long enough to enter the bloc, Slovenian President Borut Pahor said Wednesday.
Pahor was addressing Turkish ambassadors on the third day of a week-long meeting of the 6th annual Turkish Ambassadors' Conference in Ankara.
Given Turkey's economy, population and other criteria, Turkey should enter the EU, Pahor said.
"The EU should be united, but the countries within the bloc also need to protect their own identities," he said. " We are not the United States of Europe. We both need to be different and united."
He also stressed the need for a new EU constitution.
First held in 2008, the Ambassadors' Conference focuses on assessing Turkey's foreign policy and international relations, determining future strategies, and coordinating with agencies and organizations that play a role in implementing Turkish foreign policy.
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