WHAT EUROPEANS THINK ABOUT TURKEY AND WHY
Katinka Barysch, Centre for European Reform (CER)
EurActiv
ment/europeans-think-turkey/article-166353
Aug 31 2007
Belgium
For many politicians, journalists and think-tanks, the benefits of
Turkish accession to the EU are "plain to see", writes Katinka Barysch
in an August 2007 paper for the Centre for European Reform (CER).
These range from the economic boost provided by a fast-growing and
youthful Turkey to the soft power that the EU would gain from including
a functioning Muslim democracy, she states.
However, for most people, fears related to Turkish accession are
"immediate" and "personal", she adds, and include job loss, the
threat of terrorism and the weakening of national culture. Meanwhile,
the benefits are perceived by EU citizens as being "rather abstract",
she believes – such as future economic growth, a stronger EU foreign
policy and increased energy security.
Turkey’s potential membership raises questions ranging from the future
shape of the EU to the integration of existing immigrant communities
and countries that face similar issues do not necessarily arrive at
the same conclusions, observes the author – citing the view of some
Poles, Czechs and Germans that Turkey has no place in a "Christian"
EU, whereas this is not a problem for the "predominantly Christian"
Spaniards.
Barysch believes that a country’s attitude depends on whether it sees
Turkish accession as a question of foreign policy (Spain, the UK)
or a matter of internal EU or national politics (France, Germany).
Moreover, many people in Belgium, France, Germany and Italy are
opposed as they fear it would bring an end to the federalist vision
of political union, she claims. Paradoxically, countries less keen on
political integration such as the UK and the Nordic countries support
Turkey’s candidacy for this very reason, she adds.
Other points of view are specific to individual countries. Barysch
claims that French opposition centres on the fear that their country’s
central role in the EU has already been weakened by enlargement
and that Turkey would be a "step too far". Moreover, she ponders
whether France’s struggle to integrate its sizeable Muslim minority –
emphasised by recent rioting – has "overburdened" the debate.
Germans are concerned by the impact Turkey’s accession would have
on the EU balance of power and its ability to move forward, she
believes. Meanwhile, Austria appears to be the most sceptical country,
she reveals – citing cultural concerns rather than religious ones as
the main reason for Austrian opposition.
It may take events, not words, to convince the EU public of the
merits of Turkey’s accession, believes Barysch – such as a unilateral
withdrawal of Turkish troops from Cyprus, an opening of the border
with Armenia, and an end to threats of army intervention and court
orders against journalists.
The paper concludes that although public opinion is a "challenge"
for Turkish accession, it is not an "insurmountable obstacle".
Centre for European Reform (CER): What Europeans think about Turkey
and why (August 2007)