A group of leading German businessmen yesterday visited Istanbul’s Sabanci Museum at the invitation of Omer Sabanci

A group of leading German businessmen yesterday visited Istanbul’s Sabanci Museum at the invitation of Omer Sabanci. The Association of German Industry, made up of businessmen dominating an important part of European Economy, is the most influential power behind Germany’s Christian Democrats. Their message differs markedly from that of Christian Democratic Union (CDU) leader Angela Merkel, who has openly rebuffed Turkey’s European Union membership bid. They, on the contrary, say that Turkey should be an EU member. ‘I can say that we can see then end of the economic crisis,’ Sabanci told the group. ‘We’ve entered a period of stability. Now we’re focused on starting accession talks with the EU.’ The first response to this came from Federation of German Industry (BDI) head Michael Ragowski: ‘We see Turkey’s importance for the future of Europe. We’re in favor of starting accession talks with Turkey and will support it as long as it fulfills the Copenhagen criteria and gets a positive report from Brussels. Europe should open its doors to Turkey.' According to leading industrialist Arnold Kawlath, the young generation in Europe is growing lazy. This generation has lost its passion for productivity and hard work. Europe would increase labor competition by opening its doors to new members, including Turkish workers, who are more ready to work. Turkey would contribute to the European economy not only by boosting labor quality but also as a new market. And on one point the businessmen are unanimous: Since the European public fears that Turks will come and take their jobs, Turkey must start a professional campaign to improve its image and overcome this hurdle.