ANKARA, Turkey – Turkey and European Union representatives reopened talks November 5 to discuss Turkey’s 26 year–long bid for accession to the E.U. The negotiations marked progress for Turkey’s bid, which had been suspended for three and a half years due to continuing concerns over freedom of speech and democracy, handling of religious minorities, and a protracted dispute with Cyprus, an existing member of the E.U.
Negotiations were planned to commence in June but were cancelled due to European concerns over the Turkish government’s heavy–handed reaction to mostly peaceful protesters in Istanbul’s Taksim Square. During the protests, six people were killed and 8,000 others injured.
Turkey’s history of cracking down on free speech has contributed to its stalled E.U. bid. The European Commission said as of 2011, 64 journalists sat in Turkish jails and a major media group that had spoken out against the government was ordered to pay a $2.5 billion fine.
The main opponents of Turkey’s bid for E.U. membership, Germany and France, have been vocal about questions of Turkish cultural integration into Europe.
Turkey is a secular democracy with a majority Muslim population of 76 million and Germany and France have expressed concerns about their own cultural traditions and influence if Turkish citizens are allowed to move freely within the E.U. Such a sizable population would give Turkey the second largest number of members to the European parliament, second only to Germany.
While some European countries have reservations on Turkish admission to the E.U., so do the Turkish people. In 2004, a year before formal E.U. negotiations began, 70 percent of Turks saw the benefit of joining the E.U. By 2010, that number had dropped to just 38 percent.
Turkey has shown itself to be a rising economic and diplomatic power in the Middle East. Though Europe still purchased 56 percent of Turkish exports in 2010, 20 percent went to the Middle East, an increase of about seven percent since 2004.
As a Muslim leader of a robust and democratic nation, Turkey’s Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan serves as an example of how democracy and Islam are consistent with one another and could wield vast influence in the region.
Analysts say the perception of European repudiation of Turks and their culture during their accession to the E.U. could breed resentment in the Muslim world. Strained relations with Turkey—a country bordered by Iraq, Syria, and Iran—could cost European powers strategic influence in the region. These realities have led Turkey’s E.U. Minister Egemen Bagis to state that Europe needs Turkey more than Turkey needs it.
Turkish officials say they could withdraw their bid for E.U. membership, citing economic woes in the E.U. and Turkey’s increasing economic and political influence in the Middle East post–Arab Spring. Without the prospect of EU accession, however, some human rights advocates worry that the Turkish government will no longer feel pressure for restraint, and this could worsen crackdowns on free speech and expression.
With talks reopening this month, however, tensions seem to have eased somewhat. E.U. Commissioner for Enlargement Stefan Fuele said the E.U. should stay “the benchmark for reform in Turkey…We need more engagement, not less.”
Bagis replied, “Stefan, I want to assure you, we are ready to not only get engaged but also get married.”
– Kaylie Cordingley
Sources: Reuters, EU Observer, British Broadcasting Corporation, Al Jazeera, New York Times
Sources: PressTV