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Temporarily So Called Turkey and the World: Perceptions, Relations...

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  • #61
    Re: Temporarily So Called Turkey and the World: Perceptions, Relations...

    Relations With The EU (Part I)


    TURKEY INCHES TOWARD EU, CLOUDED BY FRENCH OBJECTIONS
    By James G. Neuger

    Bloomberg
    Update 2
    Dec 19 2007

    Dec. 19 (Bloomberg) -- Turkey inched ahead with its bid to enter the
    European Union, in talks increasingly clouded by French President
    Nicolas Sarkozy's determination to make sure the country never gets in.

    Negotiations started today over aligning Turkey's regulations with
    the EU in the areas of consumer protection and transport and energy
    networks. Turkey has now started talks in six of the bloc's 35 policy
    areas and completed one.

    Under French pressure, the EU has shifted the negotiations into a
    lower gear, a sign of rising opposition in the heart of Europe to
    letting in a predominantly Muslim country with a standard of living
    less than a third of the EU level.

    "Certain member states are trying to erode our political and judicial
    position," Turkish Foreign Minister Ali Babacan told a Brussels
    press conference. "Such attitudes are not proper and do not reflect
    a responsible approach."

    Turkey has made scant progress toward joining since embarking on
    the EU entry marathon in 2005. The bloc froze negotiations in eight
    policy areas last year to punish Turkey for refusing to trade with
    the Greek-speaking Republic of Cyprus, part of the EU since 2004.

    Negotiations in two or three more areas might get under way in the
    first half of next year, EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn said.

    Alternative Union

    Sarkozy, elected in May on a wave of French anti-Turkey sentiment,
    says Turkey's place is in an alternative "Mediterranean Union" and has
    vetoed talks in policy areas that would lead directly to EU membership.

    "Must Europe enlarge indefinitely and, if yes, what will the
    consequences be?" Sarkozy said last week after persuading the EU to
    set up a blue-ribbon study group that he expects to challenge Turkey's
    fitness to join.

    Only 21 percent of Europeans want Turkey to become a member, according
    to a September poll by the German Marshall Fund. European attitudes
    have darkened the anti-EU mood in Turkey, where only 40 percent of
    Turks think membership would be a "good thing," down from 54 percent
    last year and 73 percent in 2004, the poll found.

    Even Turkish schoolchildren are hearing of the broadsides by Sarkozy
    and other anti-Turkey politicians in Europe, making it harder for the
    government to amass support to modernize the economy along EU lines,
    Babacan said.

    `Negative Impact'

    Such "provocations" stir feelings among Turks "that they are unwanted,
    and that in turn has a negative impact on their position toward the
    EU," Babacan said.

    Babacan, Rehn and Portuguese Foreign Minister Luis Amado, the chairman
    of today's meeting, all backed the "accession" process, using the
    jargon that France forced the EU to strip from the preparatory
    documents.

    Diverging public opinion in Turkey and Europe threatens to breed a
    "dangerous situation," Amado said.

    Rehn, the EU commissioner shepherding the talks, voiced concern
    that the "political atmospherics" between Turkey and EU capitals are
    damaging the entry process and said the EU needs to be fair to Turkey.

    "At the same time, we need to be firm and emphasize conditionality
    and that's why we encourage Turkey to relaunch the reform process
    in full," Rehn said. As a sign of support for Prime Minister Recep
    Tayyip Erdogan's EU strategy, the European Commission's president,
    Jose Barroso, will visit Turkey early next year, he said.

    Hammering home a point he often makes in Brussels, Babacan said the
    Turkish government's plans to upgrade the economy and enhance civil
    rights won't be blown off course by the souring mood.

    EU Subsidies

    For example, Babacan said, today's start of talks on linking Turkey's
    transport and energy networks to the European grid makes Turkey
    eligible for EU subsidies to upgrade its infrastructure.

    Babacan gave no timetable for meeting the EU's demand that Turkey
    rewrite a section of the penal code that has been used to prosecute
    authors who challenged the Turkish orthodoxy that that the World
    War I massacre of Armenians by Ottoman Turks was not genocide. One
    journalist convicted under the law, Hrant Dink, was later murdered
    by a teenage nationalist.

    Divided Cyprus

    The status of Cyprus also remains an obstacle for Turkey. Turkey's
    military has occupied the northern part of the Mediterranean island
    since a 1974 invasion in response to a Greek-backed coup.

    The dividing line hardened in 2004, when Greek-speaking Cypriots
    rejected a unification proposal that had the backing of the Turkish
    side. As a result, Cyprus joined the EU without the Turkish-speaking
    north of the island, which remains fenced off in the only disputed
    border in the EU.

    Skirmishes between the Turkish army and Kurdish rebels operating out
    of northern Iraq played no role in today's talks. The conflict with
    the Kurds didn't come up and Babacan said Turkey isn't relying on
    military force alone to pacify the border.

    An EU statement yesterday called on the Turkish military to exercise
    restraint, while acknowledging Turkey's right to combat terrorists.


    Turkish Daily News, Turkey
    Dec 15 2007


    Is the EU accession process completely blocked?
    Saturday, December 15, 2007

    İlter TÜRKMEN

    Turkey reacted strongly against France's insistence to exclude the
    words `accession' and `membership' from the paragraph related to
    Turkey within the concluding statement of the European Union summit.
    In order to block Turkey's way, Sarkozy had formerly asked for the
    establishment of a Committee of Wise Men to determine the
    geographical borders of the EU. He did not get his wish and had to be
    satisfied with the formation of a think tank, whose agenda excluded
    the EU borders and whose powers were limited to issues like energy,
    environment and the fight against terror. Sarkozy had also caused the
    suspension of the negotiations on five out of the 35 chapters that he
    associated with Turkey's full membership.

    Actually, this measure provided him with the opportunity to block
    Turkey's membership for as long as he wanted to. The exclusion of the
    word `accession' from the conclusion statement will achieves nothing
    other than underlining his opposition against Turkey's membership and
    provoking Turkey's indignation.

    It's also important to know that there are those with a milder
    approach toward Sarkozy's attitude. This is their point of view: It
    would be better to evaluate the French president's current actions
    from the angle of internal politics. The main objective of Sarkozy's
    domestic strategy is to attract the votes of the radical right,
    represented by the National Front. This angle would also serve to
    explain his harsh policies against immigrants and Turkey.

    When Turkey is in question, Sarkozy insists on excluding the word
    `accession' from the conclusion statement, however, he does nothing
    to prevent the opening of new chapters. It must be kept in mind that
    as soon as he came to power, he sent his diplomatic consultant, who
    enjoys more diplomatic power than the foreign affairs minister, to
    assure Ankara that the Senate would be prevented from approving the
    draft bill, which states that denying the `Armenian genocide' claims
    will be considered a crime. Could people who defend this more
    moderate approach be right? Only time will show.

    Anyway, Turkey's EU membership process has been heavily encumbered
    by the negotiations from the beginning. The French attitude is not
    the only reason for that. The refusal to include Southern Cyprus in
    the Customs Union has lead to the suspension of eight chapters, and
    this issue is not likely to be solved very soon. Turkey is trying to
    overcome this problem by establishing an extensive settlement process
    in Cyprus and wants the United Nations general secretary to bring
    back Greek Cyprus and the Turkish Republic of northern Cyprus to the
    negotiation table. However, the general secretary has no intention to
    initiate anything unless both sides prove their willingness to solve
    the problem.

    The Greek Cyprus elections to be held in February 2008 are not
    likely to create a big change in the current political scene. Latest
    developments seem to favor the co-existence of two independent states
    as a solution to the present dilemma to such an extent that Greek
    Cyprus is now worried that the probable independence of Kosovo will
    constitute a precedent for Cyprus. The bistate formula will no doubt
    be the ideal solution for northern Cyprus. However, Greek Cyprus has
    no reason for concern. We shall not mark any progress towards that
    solution until we change our present thinking pattern.

    Other factors

    This pessimistic picture includes other factors that effect the
    negotiation process indirectly, like article 301 of the Turkish Penal
    Code and the religious rights of the minorities. The EU Commission's
    2007 Progress Report does not differ very much from the previous
    ones, where these items are concerned. It especially stresses the
    fact that the reform process has slowed down. The only positive
    observation deals with the July 22 general elections and the
    presidential elections.

    The Commission believes that the election results prove the
    existence of an active democracy in Turkey. It's a pity that we fail
    to exploit this significant success.

    Another major factor that has a negative effect on our relations
    with the EU consists of the endless remarks against the EU pronounced
    by public figures, who also influence the public opinion. How does it
    help us to constantly blame the EU for our problems, while we ignore
    our own mistakes? Does it relieve us of our responsibilities?

    * The translation of İ.Türkmen's column was provided by Nuran
    İnanç.

    -----------
    Copyright 2007, Turkish Daily News. This article is redistributed with
    permission for personal use of Groong readers. No part of this article
    may be reproduced, further distributed or archived without the prior
    permission of the publisher. Contact Turkish Daily News Online at
    http://www.TurkishDailyNews.com for details.
    -----------
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