Turkey finding own path instead of waiting for EU, experts say – Hurriyet Daily News and Economic Review

ISTANBUL – Hürriyet Daily News

Far from “sitting in the waiting room” of the European Union, Turkey is following its own independent path in the area thanks to its regional weight, according to a number of foreign policy experts.

As a reaction to the lengthy and reluctant behavior of the EU on Turkey’s snail-paced accession process, Ankara has started to shape a new foreign policy position in the world in recent years, according to Professor Peter Balazs, a former Hungarian foreign minister and former EU commissioner for regional policy.

“Turkey could play an extremely important role as a model and potential mediator. This would be a proof, once again, that not only does Turkey need Europe for her further modernization and welfare, but Europe needs Turkey as well for her stability and security,” Balazs said in “The Cost of No on Turkey’s Membership to the EU,” a report recently published by the Open Society Institute.

Five different contributors, three of them are from current and upcoming EU presidencies, wrote articles for the report.

Ankara has carved out a space in the region thanks to its longstanding economic, strategic, cultural and historical ties with a large neighborhood in the Middle East and beyond, Balazs said.

One of the contributors warned of the potential fallout if Turkey did not ultimately become an EU member.

“Were the EU to continue to drag its feet on Turkey’s accession negotiations, then it would not only lose a country which the Arab world views as a successful example of a Muslim democracy, it would also forgo the opportunity to avail itself of Turkey’s historical imagination and the sensitivities to the Middle East and North Africa which that brings,” said Krzysztof Bobinski, president of Unia&Polska Foundation.

Cyprus issue

Philippos Savvides of the International Center for Hellenic and Mediterranean Studies highlighted the potential role of a united Cyprus in accelerating Turkey’s EU membership process, as well as in the promotion of security and stability in the Middle East and North Africa.

“The resolution of the Cyprus problem will not only embolden the island’s role, but will also help revitalize Turkey’s EU accession negotiations. On the other hand, the continuation of Turkey’s EU accession process will help the negotiation process. Moreover, it will reassure the skeptics that Turkey will remain committed to the solution that Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots agree upon,” said Savvides.

Energy resources

Shahin Abbasov and Farid Gahramanov presented Azerbaijan’s public opinion on Turkey’s EU accession process.

“Turkish accession to the European Union [has received the] active support of national elites and ordinary citizens in Azerbaijan and the Central Asian countries,” they said. “Once Turkey enters the EU, these countries will have a trusted advocate for their interests in the European community with wide political, economic and financial resources. With Turkey’s accession to the EU, Azerbaijan’s energy resources will be directly delivered to the EU market without any corridor.”

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