Accession of Turkey to the European Union 1 Accession of Turkey to the European Union Turkish EU accession bid EU average Turkey PPPGDP ($M) $14.793 trillion 1,040,275 [1] Area (km²) 4,324,782 783,562 Population 501,259,840 72,561,312 Status Candidate Opened chapters: 13 Closed chapters: 1 Website abgs.gov.tr [2] Turkey's application to accede to the European Union was made on 14 April 1987. Turkey has been an associate member of the European Union (EU) and its predecessors since 1963. [3] After the ten founding members, Turkey
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Turkey's application to accede to the European Union was made on 14 April 1987. Turkey has been an associatemember of the European Union (EU) and its predecessors since 1963.[3] After the ten founding members, Turkey
was one of the first countries to become a member of the Council of Europe in 1949, and was also a founding
member of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in 1961[4] and the Organization
for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) in 1973. The country has also been an associate member of the
Western European Union since 1992, and is a part of the "Western Europe" branch of the Western European and
Others Group (WEOG) at the United Nations. Turkey signed a Customs Union agreement with the EU in 1995 and
was officially recognised as a candidate for full membership on 12 December 1999, at the Helsinki summit of the
European Council. Negotiations were started on 3 October 2005, and the process, should it be in Turkey's favour, is
likely to take at least a decade to complete.[5] The membership bid has become a major controversy of the ongoing
enlargement of the European Union.[6]
History
Background
After the Ottoman Empire's collapse following World War I, Turkish revolutionaries led by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk
emerged victorious in the Turkish War of Independence, establishing the modern Turkish Republic as it exists today.
Atatürk, then Prime Minister and later President of Turkey, implemented a series of reforms, including secularizationand industrialization, intended to modernize the country.[7] During World War II, Turkey remained neutral until
February 1945, when it joined the Allies. The country took part in the Marshall Plan of 1947, became a member of
the Council of Europe in 1949,[8] and a member of NATO in 1952.[9] During the Cold War, Turkey allied itself with
the United States and Western Europe.
1960s –1990s
The country first applied for associate membership in the European Economic Community in 1959, and on 12
September 1963 signed the "Agreement Creating An Association Between The Republic of Turkey and the European
Economic Community", also known as the Ankara Agreement. This agreement came into effect the following year
on 12 December 1964. The Ankara Agreement sought to integrate Turkey into a customs union with the EEC whilst
acknowledging the final goal of membership.[7] In November 1970, a further protocol called the "Additional
Protocol" established a timetable for the abolition of tariffs and quotas on goods traded between Turkey and the
EEC.[7]
On 14 April 1987, Turkey submitted its application for formal membership into the European Community. The
European Commission responded in December 1989 by confirming Ankara ’s eventual membership but also by
deferring the matter to more favorable times, citing Turkey’s economic and political situation, as well its poor
relations with Greece and the conflict with Cyprus as creating an unfavorable environment with which to begin
negotiations.[10] This position was confirmed again in the Luxembourg European Council of 1997 in which
accession talks were started with central and eastern European states and Cyprus, but not Turkey. During the 1990s,Turkey proceeded with a closer integration with the European Union by agreeing to a customs union in 1995.
Moreover, the Helsinki European Council of 1999 proved a milestone as the EU recognised Turkey as a candidate on
The next significant step in Turkey – EU relations came with the December 2002 Copenhagen European Council.[11]
According to it, "the EU would open negotiations with Turkey 'without delay' if the European Council in December
2004, on the basis of a report and a recommendation from the Commission, decides that Turkey fulfills the
Copenhagen political criteria."[11]
The European Commission recommended that the negotiations should begin in 2005, but also added variousprecautionary measures. The EU leaders agreed on 16 December 2004 to start accession negotiations with Turkey
from 3 October 2005.[12] Despite an offer from the Austrian People's Party and the German Christian Democratic
Union of a privileged partnership status, a less than full membership, EU accession negotiations were officially
launched.[13]
Turkey's accession talks have since been stalled by a number of domestic and external problems. Both Austria and
France have said they would hold a referendum on Turkey's accession. In the case of France, a change in its
Constitution was made to impose such a referendum.[14] The issue of Cyprus continues to be a major obstacle to
negotiations.[15] European officials have commented on the slowdown in Turkish reforms which, combined with the
Cyprus problem, led the EU’s Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn in March 2007 to warn of an impeding ‘train
crash’ in the negotiations.[16] Due to these setbacks, negotiations again came to a halt in December 2006, with the
EU freezing talks in 8 of the 35 key areas under negotiation. [17]
Future
The earliest date that Turkey could enter the EU is 2013, the date when the next financial perspectives (the EU's six
year budgetary perspectives) will come into force. Ankara is currently aiming to comply with EU law by this
date,[18] but Brussels has refused to back 2013 as a deadline. [19] In 2006 European Commission President José
Manuel Barroso said that the accession process will take at least until 2021. [20]
Timeline
Turkey joined the Council of Europe in 1949 and isregarded as a founding member of the organization.
31 July 1959 – Turkey applies for associate membership in
the European Economic Community.
12 September 1963 – Association Agreement signed,
acknowledging the final goal of membership.
1 December 1964 – Association Agreement comes into
effect.[7]
23 November 1970 – Protocol signed providing a timetable
for the abolition of tariffs and quotas on goods.
1980 – Freeze in relations following the 1980 Turkish coup
d'état.
1983 – Relations fully restored following elections.
14 April 1987 – Application for formal membership into the European Community.
18 December 1989 – European Commission refuses to immediately begin accession negotiations, citing
Turkey’s economic and political situation, poor relations with Greece and their conflict with Cyprus, but
overall reaffirming eventual membership as the goal.
6 March 1995 – European Union-Turkey Customs Union is formed.
12 December 1999 – European Council recognises Turkey as a candidate on equal footing with other
12 December 2002 – European Council states that "the EU would open negotiations with Turkey 'without
delay' if Turkey fulfills the Copenhagen criteria."
24 April 2004 – Turkey & Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus back the Annan Plan for Cyprus.
17 December 2004 – European Union agrees to start negotiations.
3 October 2005 – Opening of 6 chapters of the Acquis: Right of Establishment & Freedom To Provide
Services, Company Law, Financial Services, Information Society & Media, Statistics, and Financial Control.
12 June 2006 – Chapter on Science & Research opened and closed.
11 December 2006 – Continued dispute over Cyprus prompts the EU to freeze talks on 8 chapters and state
that no chapters would be closed until a resolution is found. [21]
29 March 2007 – Chapter on Enterprise & Industrial Policy opened.[22]
25 June 2007 – Chapter on Statistics & Financial Control opened, but the opening of the chapter on Economic
& Monetary Policy was blocked by French President Nicolas Sarkozy.[23]
20 December 2007 – Chapters on Health & Consumer Protection and Trans-European Networks are
opened.[24]
17 June 2008 – Chapters on Company Law and Intellectual Property Law are opened.[25]
19 December 2008 – Chapters on Economic & Monetary Policy and Information Society & Media are
opened.[26]
30 June 2009 – Chapter on Taxation is opened.[27]
8 December 2009 – Chapter on Environment is opened.[28]
30 June 2010 – Chapter on Food Safety, Veterinary & Phytosanitary Policy is opened.
Status of the acquis chapters
To accede to the EU, Turkey must first successfully complete negotiations with the European Commission on eachof the 35 chapters of the acquis communautaire, the total body of EU law. Afterwards, the member states must
unanimously agree on granting Turkey membership to the European Union.
[5] "Interview with European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso on BBC Sunday AM" (http://ec. europa. eu/commission_barroso/
president/pdf/interview_20061015_en.pdf) (PDF). European Commission. 2006-10-15. . Retrieved 2006-12-17.
[6] "Fifty Years On, Turkey Still Pines to Become European" (http://www.time. com/time/world/article/0,8599,1920882,00. html). TIME .
September 8, 2009. . Retrieved 2009-09-08.
[7] "Turkey and EU" (http://web. archive. org/web/20070927211417/http://www.turkishembassy. org/index. php?option=com_content&
task=view&id=57&Itemid=235). Embassy of the Republic of Turkey (Washington, DC). Archived from the original (http://www.
turkishembassy. org/index. php?option=com_content&task=view&id=57&Itemid=235) on 2007-09-27. . Retrieved 2007-07-04.
[8] "Turkey and the Council of Europe" (http://web.archive.org/web/20061207073323/http://www. coe. int/T/E/Com/About_Coe/
Member_states/e_tu. asp#TopOfPage). Council of Europe. 2006-10-27. Archived from the original (http://www. coe. int/T/E/Com/
About_Coe/Member_states/e_tu. asp#TopOfPage) on 2006-12-07. . Retrieved 2006-10-30.
[9] "Greece and Turkey accede to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization" (http://www. nato. int/multi/photos/1952/m520218a. htm). NATO
Media Library. NATO. 1952-02-18. . Retrieved 2006-10-30.
[10] "About Turkey and the EU" (http://www.turkishembassylondon.org/canon/aboutturkey_eu. htm). Embassy of the Republic of Turkey in
London. . Retrieved 2007-07-04.
[11] European Council: EU would open accession negotiations with Turkey (http://www. consilium. europa. eu/ueDocs/cms_Data/docs/ pressData/en/ec/73842. pdf)
[12] Independent Commission on Turkey (http://www. independentcommissiononturkey. org/oped_20050831. html)
[13] Today's Zaman: Turkey Starts Full Membership Negotiations with EU (http://www. todayszaman. com/tz-web/detaylar. do?load=detay&
link=24900)
[14] Turkey, with eye on EU, says determined to reform (http://www.eubusiness.com/news-eu/1239805023. 06), EUbusiness, 2009-03-15
[15] EUobserver: Cyprus threatens to block EU deal on Turkey talks (http://euobserver. com/9/23008)
[16] "The ins and outs: The EU's most effective foreign-policy instrument has been enlargement. But how far can it go?" (http://www.
economist. com/research/articlesBySubject/displaystory.cfm?subjectid=682266&story_id=8808134). The Economist . 2007-03-17. .
Retrieved 2007-07-04.
[17] The Independent: EU freezes talks on Turkey membership (http://www. independent. co. uk/news/world/europe/
[21] EU resumes Turkey accession talks (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/6503869. stm), BBC News, 2007-03-29. Retrieved
2007-03-29.
[22] EU-Turkey to re-start entry talks (http://www. eupolitix.com/latestnews/news-article/newsarticle/
eu-turkeynbspto-re-startnbspentry-talks/), EUPolitix.com, 2007-03-29. Retrieved 2007-03-29.[23] Turkish Entry Into Europe Slowed by Sarkozy Move (http://www. nytimes.com/2007/06/25/world/europe/25cnd-turkey. html), New
York Times, 2007-06-25. Retrieved 2007-06-25.
[24] Defying France, EU opens two more chapters for accession (http://www.todayszaman. com/tz-web/detaylar. do?load=detay&
[26] European Union expands entry talks with Turkey (http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/12/19/europe/EU-EU-Turkey. php),
International Herald Tribune, 2008-12-19. Retrieved 2008-12-19.
[27] (http://euobserver. com/15/28397)
[28] (http://euobserver. com/9/29116)
[29] Some of the chapters do not proceed to the next stage in the process, because they are blocked by Cyprus.
[30] http://euobserver. com/9/29116
[31] Excluding Chapters 34 (Institutions) and 35 (Other Issues) since these are not legislation chapters.[32] http://ec. europa. eu/enlargement/pdf/enlargement_process/accession_process/how_does_a_country_join_the_eu/
Turkey has a secular constitution, with no official state religion. [26]
Nominally, though, 99% of the Turkish population is Muslim [27] [28] of
whom over 70% belong to the Sunni branch of Islam. A sizeable
minority, about over 25% of the Muslim population, is affiliated with
the Shi'a Alevi branch.[29] The Christians (Eastern Orthodox, Catholic,Gregorian, Syriac, Protestant) and Jews (Sephardic, Ashkenazi) were
formerly sizable religious minorities in the country. Turkey would be
the first Muslim-majority country to join the European Union, although
Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Kosovo are also
Muslim-majority, and have been recognized as potential candidate
countries.[30]
Official population census polls in Turkey do not include information
regarding a person's religious belief or ethnic background due to the
regulations set by the Turkish constitution, which defines all citizens of the Republic of Turkey as Turkish in terms of nationality, regardless of faith or race. [31]
There is a strong tradition of secularism in Turkey. The state has no official religion nor promotes any, and actively
monitors the area between the religions.[32] The constitution recognizes the freedom of religion for individuals,
whereas religious communities are placed under the protection of the state; but the constitution explicitly states that
they cannot become involved in the political process (by forming a religious party, for instance) or establish
faith-based schools. No party can claim that it represents a form of religious belief; nevertheless, religious
sensibilities are generally represented through conservative parties.[32] Turkey prohibits by law the wearing of
religious headcover and theo-political symbolic garments for both sexes in government buildings, schools, and
universities;[33] the law was upheld by the Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights as "legitimate"
in the Leyla Şahin v. Turkey case on 10 November 2005.[34]
Article 301
Article 301 states that "a person who publicly insults the Turkish nation, the State of the Republic of Turkey, or the
Grand National Assembly of Turkey, shall be punishable by imprisonment of between six months and two years" and
also that "expressions of thought intended to criticise shall not constitute a crime."
The EU was especially critical of this law during the September 2005 trial of novelist Orhan Pamuk over comments
that recognized the deaths of thirty thousand Kurds and a million Armenians. Enlargement commissioner Olli Rehn
and members of the European Parliament called the case "regrettable", "most unfortunate", and "unacceptable".[35]
After the case was dropped three months later, Turkey's Foreign Minister Abdullah Gül indicated that Turkey mayabandon or modify Article 301, stating that "there may be need for a new law".[36] In September 2006, the European
Parliament called for the abolition of laws, such as Article 301, "which threaten European free speech norms".[37] On
April 30, 2008, the law was reformed.[38] According to the reform, it is now a crime to explicitly insult the "Turkish
nation" rather than "Turkishness"; opening court cases based on Article 301 require the approval of the Justice
Minister; and the maximum punishment has been reduced to two years in jail.[38]
Kemal Kerinçsiz, an ultra-nationalist lawyer, and other members of Büyük Hukukçular Birliği (Great Jurists Union)
headed by Kerinçsiz, have been "behind nearly all of [Article 301] trials."[39] In January 2008, Kerinçsiz was
arrested for participating in an ultra-nationalist underground organization, Ergenekon, allegedly behind the attacks
on the Turkish Council of State and Cumhuriyet newspaper,[40] the assassination of several Christian missionaries
and Armenian-Turkish journalist Hrant Dink,[41] as well as allegedly plotting the assassination of Nobel laureateOrhan Pamuk.[42] [43]
[16] "Turkey unhappy at EU talks delay" (http://news.bbc. co. uk/2/hi/europe/6241176. stm). BBC News. 2007-06-26. . Retrieved
2007-07-03.
[17] "Turkey at a glance" (http://devdata.worldbank.org/AAG/tur_aag.pdf) (PDF). World Bank. 2006-08-13. . Retrieved 2006-12-10.[18] "Data and Statistics for Turkey" (http://go.worldbank.org/KMLVYJ93M0). World Bank. 2005. . Retrieved 2006-12-10.
[19] "Turkey - Population and Demographics" (http://www. intute.ac. uk/sciences/worldguide/html/1046_people. html). Intute. 2006-07. .
Retrieved 2006-12-10.
[20] The Economist: "Turkey, America and Europe: Who is losing Turkey?" (http://www. economist. com/world/europe/PrinterFriendly.
cfm?story_id=7971046)
[21] http://www. turkishweekly. net/news/92895/-39-turkish-cypriots-are-more-important-than-the-eu-39-. html
[22] "Greece calls on Turkey to pull out of Cyprus" (http://www. telegraph. co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/cyprus/7992966/
[41] Sabrina Tavernise (2008-01-28). 13 Arrested in Push to Stifle Turkish Ultranationalists Suspected in Political Killings (http://www.
nytimes. com/2008/01/28/world/europe/28turkey.html?scp=4&sq=Orhan+Pamuk&st=nyt). New York Times.
[42] Plot to kill Orhan Pamuk foiled (http://timesofindia. indiatimes.com/World/Plot_to_kill_Pamuk_foiled/articleshow/2729362. cms).
Times of India. 25 Jan 2008[43] Lea, Richard (2008-01-28). "'Plot to kill' Nobel laureate" (http://www. guardian.co. uk/books/2008/jan/28/nobelprize. orhanpamuk).
Guardian (London). . Retrieved 2008-08-26.
[44] European Parliament (2007-02-13). "Women's rights in Turkey: MEPs say improvements still needed" (http://www. europarl. europa. eu/
Article Sources and ContributorsAccession of Turkey to the European Union Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=391121864 Contributors: 159753, 386-DX, A.Garnet, Acalamari, Acegikmo1, Adl1652,
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