Don't rebuff Turkey, EU enlargement chief pleads

BRUSSELS, May 7 (Reuters) The European Union's enlargement chief, responding to the election of Nicolas Sarkozy as French president, warned member states today against rebuffing Turkey's membership bid at a highly sensitive time.

Turkey began accession talks in 2005 but Sarkozy has said he is irrevocably opposed to admitting the large, poor, secular but overwhelmingly Muslim candidate to the 27-nation bloc, arguing that it is in Asia Minor, not Europe.

But Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn told a European Parliament committee it would be dangerous for Europe to go back on its word to Ankara.

''Turkey is undergoing a very sensitive and difficult but at the same time historic process of transformation and at this very sensitive moment we should ensure that we stick to our commitment and react fairly and firmly with Turkey by maintaining the accession process alive and moving forward.

''We need patience and prudence now so that we don't further fuel nationalist sentiments,'' Rehn told lawmakers.

''It is better to help the man on the uphill struggle than when he has reached the top,'' he said.

''This is now the moment that we have to have the patience to help Turkey on its uphill struggle so that the country doesn't fall down and go back to very, very nasty past practices.'' Rehn twice warned Turkey's powerful military to stay out of politics and respect democracy after the General Staff said it was watching a presidential election with concern and was prepared to act to guarantee secularism.

He told lawmakers the most important thing now was to ensure that an early general election on July 22 was conducted freely and fairly, and that a new parliament revived Turkey's reform process to meet EU membership criteria.

Rehn repeated a statement by European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso that any member state which sought to undo the EU's negotiating mandate with Turkey would have to bear responsibility for the consequences.

Turkish analysts say the EU's ability to influence events in Turkey has waned because of a widespread perception that accession has become a remote or unrealistic prospect because many West European do not want the Turks to join.

REUTERS RS RAI2314