The European Union's enlargement commissioner, Guenter Verheugen, has told Turkey it will not be invited to open membership talks next year.

Speaking in Brussels after a meeting with the Turkish deputy prime minister, Mesut Yilmaz, Mr Verheugen said the country had failed to improve its record on human and minority rights, or to make progress on the status of Cyprus.

In what analysts say was a strong rebuke to his hosts, Mr Verheugen added he could not foresee negotiating with Turkey at all unless -- as he put it -- it was a different Turkey.

His comments follow earlier statements by Mr Yilmaz that his country would be engaged in detailed membership talks by the end of next year. Mr Verheugen also said he believed all the countries which are currently negotiating to join the EU, except Romania and Bulgaria, would have done so by 2005.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service