WHERE DO EUROPE’S BORDERS END?
Hrach Bayadyan

Hetq Online, Armenia
September 17, 2007

Hardly anyone would seriously ask today, "Is Armenia a part of Europe
or not?" This was a question around which there was a lot of debate
in the early years after independence, but which has since lost its
urgency. Another formulation – "Armenia on the road to Europe" –
is a lot fresher. This was the title of an international conference
(and later the published conference report) organized by the Armenian
Center for Humanitarian Research a few years ago.

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email to friend In contrast to the question – which is loaded towards
a positive answer, based on various historical, cultural and other
facts – the second formulation has no bias, but also implicitly
assumes that Armenia has certain potential for entry into Europe.

Naturally, this change of direction openly suggests modernization and
development in society, and suggests something more characteristic of
the modern age than our current situation. I would like to believe that
Armenia is on the road to Europe, that our country is set firmly on a
tangible road, that there are people who know the direction in which
we are heading… But I think it would be better if the issue regarding
Armenia’s prospects (because no matter how you formulate it, this is a
question of the country’s future) were placed in a wider context, one
taking into account the manifestation and influence of globalization
in the region. Without pretending to undertake a comprehensive and
profound analysis, I will try to add a few details from this position
to the formulation, or to put it more correctly, to the descriptive
definition. This will involve changing the idea from "Armenia on the
road to Europe" to "Armenia on the European Margin" where "margin"
as a metaphor has both geographical and socio-cultural meaning, but
is not necessarily negative in its implication. It does not smack of
"marginalization" in the traditional sense of that word, but is rather
larger in its meaning, which I will go into later. In any case, this
expression takes into consideration both the fact that Armenia has
been a member of the Council of Europe for several years and been a
part of changes within the European Union as well as the fact that at
the same time EU-Armenia relations remain largely formal and Armenia’s
prospects of entering the European family seem tenuous at best.

Many people think that the formation and enlargement of the
European family is the answer to the challenge of globalization. A
transnational union of this sort allows new solutions for problems
(political, economic, environmental and so on) in the present and,
most importantly, in the future. Solutions which would otherwise be
beyond the capabilities of national governments. We know that the
expansion of the European Union, which gained pace after the socialist
bloc collapsed, has now slowed down, and many are questioning how far
Europe can spread. This question is of great interest to the Europeans
themselves, but there is no consensus within the continent. This is
especially so in the case of Turkey’s perspectives of joining the
Union. And this seems more complicated than ever, after a victory in
Turkey’s presidential elections of a candidate with strong Islamist
roots.

One of the counterinfluences of globalization is the rebirth of local
identities and cultural traditions – the strengthening and spread of
national, ethnic or cultural ideas. The activation of Islamic groups,
and especially the uprising of radical Islam, is an example. This
radicalism has a different history and varying manifestation in
Armenia’s two neighbors, Iran and Turkey, but the current situation
suggests that it is impossible to ignore the influence of Islam on
the European perspectives of the South Caucasus in particular.

Three influential countries in the region – Russia, Turkey and Iran –
who have all dealt with the idea of European expansion in one way or
another, have very different standpoints on the issue. Not only is
Iran the least linked to the future destiny of the European family,
but it is also in a clear standoff with the West. The position
of the current President of Iran is rooted in a more radical
Islam. Nevertheless, there is a marked movement within society there
(which leads to open conflict with the authorities from time to time)
towards secularization and values which would bring them closer to
the West. This includes not only ideas such as freedom of expression,
human rights and so on, but also the long-term plans for information
technology, an internationally acclaimed film industry and so on.

It is pointless to speak of a possible Russian entry into the European
Union, at least as far as Russia’s current territory, ambitions and
developments are concerned. The current situation in Russia (the
question of Chechnya, widespread suppression of democratic freedom
and so on), where differences which exist with the West are being
emphasized and becoming clearer on a daily basis, all suggest a stage
of complicated Russia-Europe ties, the estrangement of Russia from
the West, and many analysts consider these changes irreversible. It
is also very clear that Russia does not conceal the jealousy with
which it views the improving relations between the West and former
Soviet republics.

Most people thought that the possibility of including Turkey into the
European Union increased the chances that the South Caucasus republics
would gain membership as well. On the other hand, less attention was
being paid in that country to the awakening of Islam, its historical
implications and the changes that it had brought into society.

Details about the changes that have occurred in Turkey over the past
few decades can be found in a series of studies conducted in different
countries in the early 1990s under the supervision of renowned Western
authors Peter Berger and Samuel Huntington, published under the title
Many Globalizations: Cultural Diversity in the Contemporary World
(2002). The project covers a number of countries including Turkey.

The Turkish researchers saw the main change in the 1990s to be the rise
of Islam, which generated debates, clashes and different approaches
to various issues. Islam started to play an important role in the
political, economic and cultural life of Turkey.

According to the researchers, "the Islamic worldview was politicized
and ‘political Islam’ became a critical political element and
influential force."

The results of the study show that, since the 1980s, the plan
for Turkey’s modernization has very characteristically seen the
coexistence of economic liberalization with traditionalism, where
traditionalism has been seen with the tendency to return to a unique
identity. This does not reject, but rather redefines the course of
social modernization, "changes perceptions of development and identity
as well as casts doubt on secular rational thinking as the only source
of modernization." This simultaneously means the strengthening of
Islam as a political power, which heralds the end of the supremacy
of secular culture and could lead to serious modifications in the
Western model of democracy.

The researchers stress that none of this was about radical Islam,
but rather about a movement which seeks ways to reconcile Eastern
and Western values. Of course, one should remember that the research
was led by certain theoretical principles and a vision for perspective
(particularly from the standpoint of Berger’s Theory of Globalization),
using corresponding concepts and language. But even with this in mind,
the conclusions of the study seem interesting and credible. Therefore,
there is no doubt that there really have been serious transformations
in Turkish society over the past two decades and some of it is still
in progress. These transformations have been tangibly changing Turkey,
both as a secular society as well as our perceptions of its European
future.

Thus, if we look at the South Caucasus in a broader regional
context and consider the changes that have been occurring in our more
influential neighboring countries, then there is reason to believe that
the current situation does not speak in favor of European prospects
for society in the South Caucasus at all.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress