Europe | Turkey and Europe

Just not our sort

|ANKARA

OPEN a Turkish newspaper these days, and an unflattering photograph of Helmut Kohl may well stare out at you. Turks want to blame someone for the fact that they are nowhere near being let into the European Union, and Germany's recognisable chancellor fits the bill. On Monday, the daily Turkiye drew an elaborate comparison between Mr Kohl's Euro-integrationist instincts and the efforts of Charlemagne to convert Europe into a single Christian empire. Mr Kohl could afford to smile were Turkiye a marginal mag with a readership of a few hundred. But it is the Turkish press's biggest seller, and has close links with members of the ruling coalition. The Charlekohl tag may stick.

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