Turkey and the European Union :: Turkey Foreign Affairs Europe Essays

Turkey and the European Union Let us begin this by looking at what the EU wants from Turkey. The criteria for EU membership adopted by the Copenhagen European Council in June 1993 require that a candidate country has achieved stability of institutions guaranteeing democracy, the rule of law, human rights, and respect for and protection of minorities; has a functioning market economy as well as the capacity to cope with competitive pressure and market forces within the Union; and has the ability to take on the obligations of membership, including adherence to the aims of political, economic and monetary union. Thus we can look at what Turkey is facing now. The main problem that faces Turkey is that it is still not a functioning and stable democracy that has the rule of law, that is respecting human rights and protecting minorities. The sporadic disappearances of people in the custody of the authorities and also the suppression of the right of free press and expression in connection with the Kurdish problem has been a stalemate. Also the EU's concerns about the role of the army in political life have to be addressed. Furthermore, under the democracy and human rights agenda Turkeys not so disturbing actions towards its own Kurdish citizens and their rights in a modern democracy is another tripping stone for it, So a solid problem in connection with government and rule persists. A growing Islamist movement and the continuing gain in popularity of the pro-Islamic political parties is another problem that Turkey faces at home, the European Union not taking too kindly to such orientation inside Turkey. Radicalism of this sort is definitely a minus point in their bid for membership. Here too we see the connection with government and law. This growth of support for such movements may be attributed to the blatant European rejection of Turkey at the Luxembourg summit. People have grown weary of continuous rejection and probably the growth in popularity for the alternative parties an be attributed to such matters. Finally the Turkish economic burden on the EU's budget represents the greatest obstacle for its membership in the union. Once a member Turkey would qualify for assistance from the EU funding bodies and could bankrupt the EU funds for such areas as economic improvement and structural growth. The admission of Turkey would release a flood of economic refugees into the other member states. This is not something that Europe would look forward too.