CYPRUS IS HURDLE TO TURKISH EU HOPES
by Rory Watson in Brussels and Suna Erdem in Istanbul
The Times (London)
November 9, 2006, Thursday
Turkey was told yesterday to open its ports and airports to Cypriot
traffic within the next month or face the suspension of talks to join
the European Union.
The ultimatum from the European Commission -the first delivered to a
potential EU country -solicited a promise to speed up domestic reforms,
but the Turkish Prime Minister insisted that the Cyprus issue could
be solved only by Greece and Greek Cypriots. "Don’t expect us to open
our ports and airports until the isolation of the Turkish Cypriot
state is lifted," Recep Tayyip Erdogan said.
Suspension of accession talks would damage relations between Turkey
and the EU.
Opposition to Turkish membership in Germany and France would make
restarting the process difficult if stalled.
It could also fuel hostility towards the EU within Turkey, where the
polls show a strong majority of Turks believing that their country
is being treated unfairly by Brussels.
The Commission report on the progress Ankara is making to prepare for
membership said that Turkey is discriminating against an EU member
state, Cyprus, by refusing to recognise it and failing to remove
obstacles to the free movement of goods and transport.
Jose Manuel Barroso, the Commission President, called on Turkey to
focus on breaking the deadlock "in the coming weeks". If it failed
to do so, he said the Commission would present recommendations to EU
leaders before they meet in Brussels for their summit in the middle
of next month.
Finland, the current EU president, will use the next four weeks to
try to broker a deal. But after the collapse of attempts to organise
a meeting with Turkish negotiators last weekend, the prospects of a
breakthrough are slim.
Neither Mr Barroso, nor Olli Rehn, the Enlargement Commissioner,
who presented the report, would spell out what the recommendations
might be. But with pressure growing for a tougher response to Ankara,
especially from France, Cyprus and Greece, temporary suspension of
the negotiations is a likely option.
However, Turkish commentators predicted that EU leaders might decide
to put off any decision into next year. Such a move would allow the
Turkish Government a clear run for re-election against a rising tide
of nationalism. Only once re-elected would the Government be likely to
make concessions on Cyprus. Election victory might herald another round
of reforms from Mr Erdogan, but in the meantime he is shying away from
the pro-EU stance that characterised the early days of his Government.
The veteran commentator Hasan Cemal said: "All sides have an interest
in the talks continuing, even Cyprus, who would lose their leverage
to demand concessions if Turkey were no longer in talks with the EU."
The Commission noted political and economic reforms in Turkey but
said that their pace had slowed. It singled out freedom of expression
and treatment of the Kurds as areas where improvements are still
required. With Romania and Bulgaria set to join the EU on January 1,
the Commission’s policy is that no further countries should be allowed
to enter before the EU has overhauled its decision-making structures
to cater for more than 27 members.
Such a settlement is highly unlikely before 2009. As a result, Croatia,
next in the membership queue, will have to wait at least three years.
OBSTACLES TO MEMBERSHIP
1999
Turkey becomes official EU candidate
October 2005
Austria and Croatia withdraw objections. Among 35 negotiating issues
are reforms of military and judiciary and improvement of situation
in Kurdish areas
June 2006
Talks on first of 35 negotiation "chapters"
September 2006
Turkey told to open ports to Greek Cypriot traffic. It refuses unless
EU ends restrictions on northern Cyprus
October 2006
French make it a crime to deny Turkish responsibility for Armenian
genocide in First World War.