Reach Out to Muslims, Obama Tells Europe

I think that Europe and France have a role to play just as the United States does, to send a signal to Muslims around the world that we welcome and want their participation," Obama said. (Reuters)

"I've said publicly that I think Turkish membership of the EU would be important," Obama told a joint press conference with French President Nicolas Sarkozy, reported Agence France-Presse (AFP).

"What the US wants to do is just to encourage talks and discussions where Turkey can feel confident that it has a friendship with France, with the United States, with all of Europe and to the extent that it defines itself that it has an opportunity to be a part of that.

Ankara's long quest to join Europe's 27-country club has been dogged by problems since it was made an official candidate in October 2005.

France and Germany lead opposition to Turkey's membership in the European Union.

If negotiations succeed, Turkey would be the first major Muslim country to join the bloc.

"In all of this, I think that Europe and France have a role to play just as the United States does, to send a signal to Muslims around the world that we welcome and want their participation in a world community that is peaceful, that is prosperous, that is developing in favor of all people," Obama said.

In a much-heralded speech to the Muslim world, Obama vowed to forge a new beginning with the Muslim world to remove a decade of mistrust and discord.

Sarkozy, however, remained opponent to Turkey's accession into the European Union.

"I told President Obama that it's very important for Europe to have borders," a defiant Sarkozy said.

"For me Europe is a force for stability in the world and I cannot, allow that force for stabilization to be destroyed.

"We want Turkey to be a bridge between East and West," he said.

Hijab Ban

The two leaders also differed on Obama's call for European countries to lift bans on the wearing of hijab.

"I won't take responsibility for how other countries are going to approach this," Obama said.

"I will tell you that in the United States, our basic attitude is that we're not going to tell people what to wear.

"My general view is that most effective way to integrate people of all faiths is to not try to suppress their traditions, but rather to open up opportunities."

Sarkozy, however, insisted that France has a different view.

"Civil servants must not wear any outward sign of their religion, whether they are Catholics, Jewish, Orthodox, Protestants or Muslims," he said.

"The second thing is a young woman can wear a head scarf provided that's a decision they took freely and not been forced on them by their family or their entourage," he said.

"France is a country where everybody can enjoy the convictions, but women are respected as is their autonomy."

France banned the Muslim veil in public places in 2004, with several European countries following suit.

Hijab is an obligatory code of dress for Muslim women, not a symbol that shows ones religious affiliation.