Turkey Touts Secular Rule In EU Bid.

The article reports that Turkey's Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has assured European Union (EU) officials that his government would not move the country away from its secular traditions. The assurance came in an effort to strengthen Turkey's bid for entry into the European Union. Erdogan has lobbied for full membership status in the EU, claiming that his nation has made significant progress toward protecting freedom of expression and human rights. Reports suggest that Erdogan met with some EU officials in September 2004 to assure them that his party was not abandoning its commitment to ensuring the nation's laws upheld secular ideals.