'Address democracy' before membership

ISTANBUL, Sept 06 (AFP): The European Union's enlargement commissioner told Turkey on Wednesday to address issues around democracy and the rule of law if it wants to boost its drive to join the bloc.
Ankara secured a pledge from Brussels to resurrect stalled membership negotiations in exchange for lifting its blockade of Sweden's drive to join the NATO military alliance.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has made mending torn ties with Western allies one of his priorities after winning a difficult election in May.
The EU's enlargement chief Oliver Varhelyi came to Ankara to try and gauge where the sides could find common ground.
Varhelyi told reporters that he hoped to come up with "something tangible and something positive" for the bloc's leaders to discuss at a European Council summit in December.
"I think this partnership has huge potential," he said. But Varhelyi noted that negotiations were currently at a "standstill" and needed action by Turkey on human rights issues to move on.
"For this to remobilise, there are very clear criteria to set out ... (that include) democracy and the rule of law," he said. Turkey first applied to be a member of the European Economic Community-a predecessor to the EU-in 1987.