Turkey asks the EU to take bold steps to advance its membership bid,

Turkey’s top diplomat on Wednesday affirmed his country’s resolve to join the European Union and urged the 27-member bloc to take courageous steps to advance its bid.
Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan made the comments in a news conference with the EU’s top official for enlargement.
Their meeting in Ankara came as Turkey tries to put its strained relations with the EU back on track.
“The European Union cannot be a truly global actor without Turkey,” Fidan said. “It is vital that the path to Turkey’s EU membership is cleared and the perspective for membership is revitalized.”
The country, which straddles Europe and Asia, became a candidate to join the EU in 1999 and started membership negotiations in 2005.