It’s Gül vs. Sarkozy:
Ankara refused on Thursday a proposal to set up a Mediterranean club, floated by new French President Nicolas Sarkozy as an alternative to full membership in the EU, and urged the conservative politician to respect membership agreements signed between Turkey and the bloc.
Sarkozy, who took over office from Jacques Chirac on Wednesday, is a strong opponent of Turkey’s membership in the EU on the basis that much of Turkey’s territory lies in Asia, he has instead proposed a lose grouping of Mediterranean countries in which Turkey could be a key player.
“Cooperation in the Mediterranean and cooperation in the EU are two different things. Turkey is a country that has begun EU talks and is in a negotiation process,” Foreign Minister Abdullah Gül told reporters.”Erecting obstacles to this negotiation process would mean not respecting signatures, commitments previously made. I do not expect this to happen.”
Some European politicians, notably Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angela Merkel, remain publicly opposed to ever admitting Turkey. But Merkel, whose country currently holds the EU’s rotating presidency, has said she would honor past commitments made to Turkey and would not block its negotiations.
We have to allow Turkey to join the EU. Turkey truly is a bridge between East and West. Turkey is the world’s only truly democratic secular Muslim country: we must celebrate that and encourage it. Furthermore, it’s also good for our own economies: Turkey’s economy will grow… and grow… and… grow for decades. Sure, Turkey is still a relatively poor country, but it’s potential is enormous: what a market for us (I’m Dutch after all). Also, Turkey has a very rich history: Istanbul, for instance, was the capital of the Byzantine empire. Istanbul, and Turkey, have always been part of Europe, were even at the center of European civilization. There are more reasons, of course, one of them is that if we refuse Turkey, Turkey might stop focusing on the West and might associate more with, say, Iraq, and Syria, and Saudi Arabia, and Egypt, and Jordan, etc. Can we truly afford to lose an ally of Turkey’s strategic importance?
Furthermore, those who say that Turkey should never be allowed to join the EU have, I am afraid, never visited Turkey themselves. Those who have always speak extremely highly of Turkey. If West European cultures would be influenced by Turkish culture this would be a good thing: in Turkey they still understand the concept of respect. And of hospitality. And of warmth. And of friendliness. Of course, there are many things that need to change in Turkey: if it were up to me, Turkish culture would look more at the individual and less at ‘the group’ (be it nation or family), and that will happen if we have open borders. As I see it, it will be a win-win situation: in the West, we might adopt some good aspects of Turkish culture, while in Turkey they might adopt some good aspects of West European culture.
And, in the long run, the economies of all those involved will benefit.
Political leaders in the West should – for once – not give in to the will of the public. Instead, our politicians have to do what they did once, a long time ago: they have to try to convince people that popular opinion is wrong. Politicians don’t do that nowadays anymore, they now look at the polls, “visit the country” and do whatever it is the majority wants. That is a mistake. Why? Because the average Joe doesn’t think things through. But, with a little encouragement, Joe does think more carefully and is willing and able to change his (or her) mind.
Cross posted at my own blog.
