Zaman, Turkey
Oct 18 2004
‘Turkey will Enliven Aging Europe’
Kalypso Nicolaidis, a professor at Oxford University and the French
National Administration School, predicts that Turkey would have a
‘Viagra’ effect on Europe in terms of population, economics, and
politics upon Europe. Nicolaidis explained that Turkey’s young and
dynamic population would provide great opportunity to Europe, which
is getting older day by day. Nicolaidis emphasized that Turkey’s
membership would not be the danger to ‘strong Europe’ as the French
imagine.
In a meeting on Turkey held at the French International Research
Center attended by Turkish parliamentarians and French social
scientists, Nicolaidis, EU advisor to Yorgo Papendreu, likened Turkey
to ‘Viagra’. Nicolaidis explained that Turkey would bring dynamism in
political and economic areas in addition to boosting the population.
While the metaphor caused people to laugh at the meeting, the
academician of Greek origin said he would write an article with this
title. In a statement to Zaman, Nicolaidis said, ‘Turkey should focus
on the question, “How will we respond to the prejudices of the
European public?”
Diasporas Produce Prejudice
At a meeting with French parliamentarians and government members last
week in Paris, Aydin Apaydin, the co-chair of the Turkey-European
Union (EU) Mixed Parliamentary Commission disclosed that the work of
the Armenian Diasporas was behind France’s prejudices against Turkey.
Apaydin said that a senator had said: “The Armenian Diaspora has
nourished the French public for years. There is also a campaign that
‘another Diaspora’ will come here as refugees. It is not possible for
the French people to change their views quickly when they have been
nourished with these arguments for years.” Apaydin told Zaman that
French politicians would bring up the alleged Armenian genocide issue
sooner or later.
10.17.2004
Ali Ihsan Aydin
Paris