Brussels - Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan arrived in the European Union's capital on Monday for talks on Iran, Gaza and his country's EU hopes, officials in Brussels said.

Erdogan was due to meet the EU's highest foreign-policy official, Javier Solana, to "discuss EU-Turkey relations and other foreign policy issues, in particular the latest developments in the Middle East and Iran," a statement from Solana's office said.

He was also set for talks with the head of the EU's executive, Jose Manuel Barroso, and with EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn.

Commission officials said that the EU side would urge Turkey to push for more reforms in key areas, including human rights and the Cyprus dispute.

The sides were also set to discuss energy issues, including the construction of a new pipeline to bring gas from Azerbaijan through Turkey to Europe, bypassing Russia and Ukraine.

Turkey has had a bumpy ride towards Europe since it first applied for membership of the European Economic Community (the precursor to the EU) in 1987.

It was finally accepted as an official candidate for membership in 1999, and began accession talks in 2005.

Talks focus on the mission of bringing Turkish legislation into line with EU norms, and are divided into 35 sections, or "chapters," on issues ranging from business and finance to human rights.

Turkey's refusal to open its ports to vessels from Cyprus provoked EU members to block the opening of eight chapters in 2006, and to refuse to sign off on any chapters before the dispute is resolved.

EU members have also called on Turkey to improve its laws on issues such as freedom of speech, human rights and the civilian control of the army.

On Sunday, Erdogan addressed a crowd of an estimated 10,000 Turks in the Belgian town of Hasselt, urging them to integrate and learn the language of their new homeland, the Belga news agency wrote. (dpa)