Once more we are undergoing a crucial period in EU-Turkey relations. In the coming weeks, the European Commission will publish its Annual Progress Report on Turkey’s European course. This time, however, there is a qualitative difference. Since October 2005, Turkey has embarked upon accession negotiations with a view to becoming a full member of the European Union. On the political level, Turkey must create stable institutions that guarantee democracy, the rule of law, human rights and respect for minorities by enhancing legitimacy and accountability. Economically, the EU expects Turkey to create a functioning market economy. The entire body of EU legislation, known as the acquis communautaire, must be adopted. Like in every other enlargement case, Turkey is required to reform itself in order to adopt, implement, and enforce the EU’s values and legislation. It will be without doubt a long and arduous process, and we are only at the first hurdle.
Greece’s strategic goalFor Greece, one of the oldest EU member states and a protagonist for the integration of Southeast Europe into the EU, a solid European perspective for Turkey has long been a strategic goal. It reflects our genuine desire to see our immediate neighborhood transformed into a truly European region, irreversibly embedded in the remarkable process of integration. But European perspective is equal to European adjustment in all areas of social, economic and, above all, political process. In this context, I must say, the signs are not very encouraging. After some initial positive, albeit moderate steps toward adopting a reform policy, the determination of the Turkish authorities to move ahead leaves much to be desired. There is no doubt that Turkey, like other candidates in the past, finds itself at a crossroads and the clock is ticking. The Ankara ProtocolThe time for decisions is approaching. Turkey must take concrete steps toward honoring in full the contractual obligations it has undertaken. Ratification of the Ankara Protocol is a condition sine qua non. The EU cannot back down and Ankara should be conscious of that. The Union cannot allow itself to engage in oriental bazaar bargaining. The criteria and requirements the EU sets for prospective members strike at the heart of the integration process. They are the DNA of the EU, nothing more and nothing less.
The criteria and requirements the EU sets for prospective members strike at the heart of the integration process. They are the DNA of the EU, nothing more and nothing less.
That is why the scrutiny is constant but fair. We expect that Turkey will sooner, rather than later, develop a full awareness of what becoming a member of the European family involves. And it should also be aware that the scale and importance of the transformation that the negotiation process entails would, beyond doubt, be to the benefit of Turkey and its people. The EU is the most effective guarantee for an ever-deepening democratic process.The criteria and requirementsFulfilling the criteria and requirements is primarily to the benefit of any candidate country, for these represent the very essence of the European project. These criteria and requirements are what Europe is all about. They are not simply hurdles that need to be overcome; meeting them means internalizing the full array of the longstanding values and principles that bind European nations together. Respecting human and minority rights and religious freedom, for example, is among the foundations of European legal and political culture. Fully adhering to international law and living by the principles of good-neighborly relations and peaceful settlement of disputes are existential values of our European Union and the beacons of the spirit of working together in the framework of an ever-closer Union. Turkey should approach its European future in such a spirit, the European spirit. This is the safest way for Turkey to avoid a ‘train crash’ that nobody wishes for By Yannis Valinakis
Professor Yannis Valinakis is the Greek deputy minister of foreign affairs.
Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs website: www.mfa.gr
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