EU ‘breaking promise’ to Turkey

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The commission says there is resentment in Turkey at the slow pace
The commission says there is resentment in Turkey at the slow pace

The European Union is in danger of breaking its promise that Turkey will eventually be granted membership, an influential group has warned.

The Independent Commission on Turkey accuses some European leaders of trying to derail Turkey’s membership bid.

Behind the carefully balanced language of diplomacy is a hard hitting report, a BBC correspondent says.

It points the finger most firmly at France, whose President Nicolas Sarkozy is strongly opposed to Turkish entry.

“France has publicly declared that it will not allow five key areas of the negotiations to go forward, specifically because the current French leadership opposes Turkish accession,” the report says.

Cyprus impasse

The Independent Commission on Turkey is made up of senior European politicians and academics, and is led by the former Finnish President and Nobel Laureate Martti Ahtisaari.

Its report says negative statements from some leaders, and efforts to substitute full membership for some other kind of privileged partnership or special relationship, are putting the EU’s credibility at stake.

“In 1999… we said that Turkey is a candidate state destined to join the union on the basis of the same criteria as apply to other candidate states. So it’s the credibility of the EU [at stake],” Mr Ahtisaari said.

France, Germany and Austria are among the countries that object to Turkey having full membership of the EU, proposing instead a privileged partnership.

The report says a vicious circle has developed.

“Fierce opposition from some European politicians combined with growing public resistance to further EU enlargement in turn has deepened resentment in Turkey and slowed the necessary reforms,” the report says.

It acknowledges that some serious obstacles remain to Turkish membership – not least, the impasse over the divided island of Cyprus.

Solving that frozen conflict would boost Turkey’s membership bid – but the commission warns that talks are running short of time.

Source:  news.bbc.co.uk,  7 September 2009


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4 responses to “EU ‘breaking promise’ to Turkey”

  1. Kufi Seydali Avatar
    Kufi Seydali

    SIR,

    The Cyprus conflict, as such, started in the 1950s and was a product of the famous Greek, Megalo Idea aiming at ENOSIS (Union with Greece). Secondly that thing called “Cyprus Nation” is a mixture of Greek and Turkish speaking peoples, each with their own proud histoy, language, religion and culture. So, to claim that ” solving that frozen conflict would boost Turkey’s membership bid” is simply not true.

    The joint partnership of the 1960s, was destroyed by the Makarios/Grivas policies of forceful
    hellenisation and union of the island with Greece. In the time period of 1963-1974 the Turkish Cypriot
    population was squeezed out of joint government and forced to live in only 3% of the island’s territory.
    What happened to the turkish Cypriots during those dark years is amply documented by the Media as
    well as the United Nations who has been maintaining peace keepers on Cyprus since March 1964.

    Now, in the face of all these hard facts, the EU decided to ignore international agreements and Turkish
    interests in Cyprus, by by-passing the UN-Peace efforts, and by according the Greek Cypriot administartion
    in the South, full membership, despite all Turkish protests. Obviously that misguided EU decision was aiming at keeping Turkey out of the EU – that is exactly the position the Turkish side is faced with today.

    The Turkish military intervention and presence, are regulated by the 1960 agreements and
    Treaty of Guarantee. The UN has never accused Turkey of aggression, and even the Athens High
    Court had ruled that the Turkish intervention of 1974 was legal and based on international agreements.

    So, the EU policies and actions on Cyprus are neither morally nor legally justifiable and present injustice
    to the Turkish Cypriots, the real victims of that “frozen conflict”. The EU broke asll her promises to the Turkish Cypriots as well, so, it is no surprise that they will disappoint Turkey.

  2. Robert Avatar
    Robert

    Why does this come as no surprise by the EU?!!! They never had any intention of letting Turkey become a member! Let’s all call a “spade a spade” here…The EU IS PLAYING THE RELIGION CARD AND DOES NOT WANT A NON-CHRISTIAN NATION IN ITS CLUB!!! France’s President is one of the biggest racists in the Western Hemisphere and has been bought off by Armenian and Greek interest groups!! Turkey already has the 15th largest economy in the world (and it’s still growing)! Soon, there will come a time when Turkey will not need the EU, but the EU will desperately need Turkey, especially if a pan-Islamic global economic union is formed, with Turkey leading the way!! I say…NO FURTHER “JUMPING THROUGH THEIR HOOPS”! Not only is it humiliating, but demeaning as well!! Let’s give the EU the “BIRD” and create our own economic destiny!!! The EU will then come crawling to us!! Let’s call their bluffs!!!

  3. jda Avatar
    jda

    Robert,

    You say “Let’s give the EU the ‘bird’ and create our own economic destiny!!!” Yet on other posts you claim to be an American. Who is the “us” in “Let us” and who is the “our” in “our destiny” if not Turks and Turkey?

    Maybe you should keep pumping out some mad light reps at Curves.

    By the way I just saw a recent picture of Ergun. He looks even worse than usual. I’ve seen healthier looking KIAs. send him a diet.

  4. haluk Avatar
    haluk

    “Turkey’s economic clout, its political role in one of the world’s most unstable regions, its geographical location as a bridge between East and West make it key player on the global stage.”
    David Milliband, Foreign Secretary of the UK, “Shared Values and Shared Future: The Importance Of Turkey To Our Common Future“, Speech at Bahcesehir University, Istanbul, Turkey, 5th September 2007

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