Newspapers in Turkey are unanimous in their dismay at the decision taken by EU leaders in Copenhagen that the country must wait until at least December 2004 before starting membership talks.

"Clearly this is not a satisfactory decision for Turkey," writes the mass-circulation Milliyet.

The paper says the decision is due to the "antipathetic feelings and prejudices" shown by some EU members, notably France and Germany.

But the Turkish political leadership is also criticised for the delay to membership talks.

Turkey must put its house in order and improve its human rights record Hurriyet

An editorial in the centre-right Hurriyet says the ruling AK party used a threatening tone against the EU, which greatly disturbed some European leaders.

But the paper adds that the party's stand does not justify "the EU's discriminatory policy" towards Turkey.

Outside influence

Several papers feel the government's position on Cyprus is behind the delay.

Turkey's leaders including Recep Tayyip Erdogan, come in for criticism

In a report entitled "Rauf Denktas outwits Erdogan", the centre-right Aksam says the present impasse shows that Turkish-Cypriot leader Mr Denktas is more powerful than Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

The Islamic Yeni Safak urges the government to "abandon the traditional policy of supporting Denktas and place emphasis on the Turkish Cypriots' interests".

However, Milliyet believes Washington's support for the bid is to blame.

"Are we now going to pay the price for [US] 'support' which has been counterproductive rather than being helpful, by opening our military bases and forming a northern front together with 100,000 American soldiers?" it asks.

"It is now time to turn our attention from West to East," the paper concludes.

Time for change

But there is also an attempt to put a brave face on the announcement, with many dailies stating that the 2004 date will give a fresh impetus to the country's reform process.

The date given in Copenhagen is a start, rather than the end Vakit

"An earlier date would certainly be better, but we should make utmost use of the next two years given the current state of democratic process and the policies being implemented," writes the Hurriyet.

The paper calls for Turkey to "put its house in order and improve its human rights record" before the EU deadline.

Cumhuriyet carries a report headlined "The Aegean Sea is the new item on the agenda", stating that the EU may now ask Turkey to resolve its dispute with Greece over the Aegean Sea as a new condition for opening accession talks.

It continues that the EU will be "knocking on Turkey's door" if it manages to eliminate corruption and poverty, achieve economic growth, prevent torture and lift prohibitions on civil freedoms.

Slow but steady

A walking turtle is faster than a lying rabbit Vakit

The centrist Radikal looks optimistically to the future.

Under the headline, "The road leading to Europe is clear", the paper stresses that the EU's decision should not constitute a reason for Turkey to abandon its reform process.

"If we can complete all the preparations, we will proceed to the negotiations at the end of 2004, which will be the final phase of our membership and join the EU between 2008 and 2013," it says.

"The door is open and waiting for us."

The fundamentalist Vakit agrees.

"The date given in Copenhagen is a start, rather than the end," the paper writes.

"We must use this opportunity, as a walking turtle is faster than a lying rabbit and stands a higher chance of winning the race."

BBC Monitoring, based in Caversham in southern England, selects and translates information from radio, television, press, news agencies and the Internet from 150 countries in more than 70 languages.