Think tank europe

Turkey's EU Membership Process: Prospects and Challenges
07/04/2010
Author : College of Europe (Belgium|Poland)
By Egemen Bağış
 
Turkey has the longest standing track record of all the candidates and new members combined in its relations with the European Union. The point of departure of Turkey’s association with the EU is the Ankara Agreement signed in 1963. Inherent in this Agreement that tied Turkey’s fate to that of Europe is the clear recognition of its prospect of full membership. This Agreement constitutes the intact political, legal and moral framework of Europe’s commitment towards Turkey.

Turkey's EU membership process started with the application to the EEC in 1959 and it took so long for Turkey to start the accession negotiations. Unfortunately, the negotiation date had not been determined till 2004 due to an ‘anchor-credibility dilemma’ in Turkey-EU relations. Since then, the negotiations are continuing with determination. In the EU integration history there is no single country that started negotiations and could not finish the process. Thus Turkey will not be an exception.

Once, the EU process was perceived just as the project of the state and the government. Now, however, we are moving rapidly towards the EU not only as the state or government of the Turkish Republic but also as citizens of Turkey and as individuals.
 
The EU accession process is the most important modernization project after the proclamation of the Turkish Republic. Therefore, we are not implementing the democratic reforms envisaged within the framework of EU requirements just to satisfy the EU. We also realize them since our nation deserves to live in much better standards. With the EU process, Turkey is becoming more democratized and more prosperous each day.

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Saturday, 11 February 2012
Europe's World - AUTUMN 2011 - #19
The Autumn 2011 issue of Europe's World is out!

We feel it's fair to say that few if any publications in the field of international relations and policy debate have grown as fast or widened their scope so remarkably as Europe's World.

Our 100,000 readers worldwide are drawn from politics, government, business, the media, universities and NGOs.
 
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