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In his talk, Mr. Babacan divided reforms in Turkey into two areas,
political and economic reforms. He argued that the economic reforms can
survive only if they are supported by political stability and
sustainable progress in the country's human rights record. Similarly, in
speaking about Turkey's European Union candidacy, he stressed the
importance of
making improvements in areas such as the environment and food safety, as
well as ensuring basic freedoms and promoting structural reforms. He
supported his arguments with comparisons between Turkey and its
neighboring countries and their standards of living.
In the question and answer session following Mr. Babacan's talk,
students asked about a number of current issues, including negotiations
with European Union, inflation and Central Bank policies.
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