ANKARA, Dhu-AlQa'dah 29, 1437, Sep 1, 2016, SPA -- The European Union wants Turkey to change its anti-terrorism law which it considers too broad but such differences do not mean a deal to grant Turkish citizens visa-free access to Europe will fail, the European parliament chief said on Thursday, Reuters reported. The remarks followed meetings between European and Turkish officials in Ankara who sought to bridge divisions over a troubled deal to ease travel for Turkish citizens in return for Turkey halting a flow of illegal migrants to the EU. But the visits by European Parliament President Martin Schultz and EU Migration Commissioner Dimitris Avramopoulos showed deep rifts persist before the deadline for implementing visa liberalisation on Oct. 1, with no sign of resolution. Turkey has long aspired to join the EU, but has often accused Europeans of blocking progress because of bias against the Muslim nation. European officials often say Turkey still falls short of EU demands on basic rights and freedoms. In translated comments, Schulz told a news conference that the EU wanted to see changes to the anti-terrorism law and acknowledged disagreement in his talks with Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim. But he said such differences did not mean the pact would fail. Yildirim said he had made clear that Turkey could not ease the law, which was vital for national security. "It is obvious that an easing or amelioration in this law will make the security threat grow," he said. In his comments, the EU commissioner on migration had earlier said Turkey had made progress on a deal to secure visa-free travel and the EU was ready to help Ankara meet conditions it had not yet met. But, like Schulz, he gave no timeline. -- SPA 19:32 LOCAL TIME 16:32 GMT www.spa.gov.sa/w