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Turkey in - Israel out?

By Colin Dale

British Prime Minister, David Cameron, today backed Turkey's entry into the EU. He said that he said the country could become a "great European power", helping to build links with the Middle East.

Speaking at the Turkish Parliament in Ankara, Mr. Cameron said he wanted to "pave the road" for Turkey to join the EU, saying the country was "vital for our economy, vital for our security and vital for our diplomacy".

A European Union without Turkey at its heart was "not stronger but weaker... not more secure but less... not richer but poorer".

Mr. Cameron said: "I'm here to make the case for Turkey's membership of the EU. And to fight for it."

With regard to Israel's blockade of Gaza, Cameron was equally forthright.

He called for Israel to relax its restrictions on Gaza. "The situation in Gaza has to change," he said. "Humanitarian goods and people must flow in both directions. Gaza cannot and must not be allowed to remain a prison camp."

The Prime Minister strongly condemned Israel after the assault on the Gaza flotilla. "The Israeli attack on the Gaza flotilla was completely unacceptable," he said. "I have told Prime Minister Netanyahu we will expect the Israeli inquiry to be swift, transparent and rigorous."Let me also be clear that the situation in Gaza has to change."

Mr. Cameron is, of course, fully aware which country is more valuable to the UK and the EU. Turkey is larger than Britain and France put together and has a population of 72,000: is rich in natural resources, including coal, iron ore, copper, chromium, antimony, mercury, gold, borate, strontium, emery, feldspar, limestone, magnetite, marble, perlite, pumice, pyrites, clay, arable land and hydropower.