Turkey's EU membership?

IslamInsight.net. I 29.11.2010

M.S.HASNA

Discussions on Turkey's EU accession still give rise to passionate reactions on both sides. This is despite the fact that in recent years, negotiations between the parties have not progressed substantially, and Turkey's patience, it seems, is running thin. What is the situation regarding the support of Turkey's membership in our country? Does Turkey belong to the European Union, or it should rather focus on its traditional neighbors in Asia?

If we look at the position of our politicians on the question of Turkey joining the EU, it is observed that most of the relevant Czech and Slovak political parties do not act openly against the possible Turkey's EU membership. Only KDH and KDU-CSL are exceptions, the last one did not make it into the Parliament, in the last elections.

In the Slovak and Czech media Turkey's EU membership has been presented in a largely negative manner and it is painted rather emotionally. In this case, probably historical factors also play a role, especially if one takes into consideration the presence of Ottoman Empire in this territory in the past. It seems as if the mainstream media largely gave up on offering balanced information on this topic. They indeed, do not offer enough information about the real advantages or disadvantages of the possible entry of Turkey into the EU.

Reserves, appear on Turkish side as well, which seems insufficiently entering into this debate, at least as long as Slovakia and the Czech Republic is concerned. One would expect that Turkey's political leaders and representatives of governmental and non-governmental agencies will appear more often in our countries, trying to explain why the EU should accept Turkey as a Member State.

Turkey ranks among twenty strongest economies in the world and its economy is growing rapidly. It represents also a bridge between East and West, the Islamic world and post-Christian Europe. Recently, it is becoming an important geopolitical player, mainly due to its effective and sophisticated foreign policy.

In discussions about the possible Turkish membership in the EU, often issues of mutual cultural differences are mentioned. These considerations are often related to the differences between the so-called Christian respectively Judeo-Christian Europe on one hand and Islamic Turkey on the other. There are however several fundamental problems regarding such division. The hypothesis on Judeo-Christian roots of Europe is in fact too simplistic and as such is not entirely accurate. Europe's cultural heritage from the ancient world, and beside Christianity and Judaism other factors have influenced it just like the ideas of Enlightenment and Islam, especially during the Muslim rule over the Iberian Peninsula.

It is time to ask the question: what kind of community does the EU actually represents? Initially it was only an economic community, then a political one, but can we say today that it is also a cultural community? EU still has not given a clear answer to this question, however, in the future, if it wants to be a major player on the world political and economic stage, accepting Turkey because of its position, political and economic power, will probably be necessary.

It should be noted that Turkey itself has a choice and for its future development the EU membership is not a matter of life and death. As ultimately proved by the most recent opinion polls from Turkey, the inclination of its people to EU membership is reducing. Turkey, in addition to relations with EU, also seeks to develop relations with its Asian neighbors, where there is space for great future potential. Stronger ties with the Arab world in particular would have been a natural way and for Turkey itself perhaps much more prospective.

Accession negotiations between Turkey and the EU have been going for many years now and in the meantime countries with a much worse economic situation, which according to many experts actually do not belong there and their accession was a political gesture rather than a perspective, or economically beneficial step, have become EU member states. In this context, the Turks have the right to feel disillusioned, when some political leaders of senior EU member sates talk about the so-called "privileged partnership". Turks quite rightly put it very clearly that they are interested only in the full membership.

Turkey has declared clearly its interest in joining EU and is introducing many political (constitutional reforms, reforms in the area of religious freedoms, etc.) and economic changes. The ball is now on the EU's side; its representatives should agree what the Turkey's EU membership means for them, whether they want or not Turkey to become a member one day. Therefore, during the latest debates, it is not clear what the main problem is, respectively, whether it is the religious and cultural differences of Turkey, or something else. However, any proposal offering less than full membership is according to my opinion unfair and the position of Turkey, which categorically rejects such offers, is fully understandable.

The issue of potential Turkish membership in the EU is complex. I assume that the potential benefits Turkish membership would bring would outweigh the disadvantages. The controversial American political scientist Samuel Huntington in his book Clash of Civilizations recommends Turkey rather forming an alliance with Muslim countries in the Middle East. Although I do not share the same opinion with the author, exactly a potential union with Muslim and Arab countries, as I have earlier mentioned in this article, indeed could be more acceptable and more natural for both sides. On the other hand, I think that a potential union with these countries does not necessarily exclude the premises of Turkey's integration into the EU. It is exactly here, in this aspect, that I see the power and importance of Turkey.