|
EU Single-Market Commissioner: Keep Turkey Out of EU
the old aphorism: "you made your bed, now lie in it" comes to mindTurkey should be kept outside the European Union to act as a "buffer" protecting Europe from Syria, Iran and Iraq, according to Frits Bolkestein, the EU single market commissioner. Mr Bolkestein argues that the former Soviet republics of Moldova, Belarus and Ukraine should also be excluded, to insulate Europe from Russia. His views come in a new book, The Limits of Europe, in which he warns that a geographically overstretched Europe would become "little more than a glorified customs union". The Dutch liberal is one of the most vocal sceptics of Turkish membership among the 20 EU commissioners who must recommend in October whether to start accession talks with Ankara. However, a majority on the Commission is expected to approve the Turkish bid, provided Ankara continues its reforms and helps to reunite the island of Cyprus. Germanyâs Christian Democrats, the conservative opposition, are among those campaigning to exclude Turkey from the EU, while many French politicians are sceptical or hostile. Valery Giscard dâEstaing, who chaired the European convention, said in 2002 that Turkish membership would mark "the end of the European Union". Ah yes, Ankara - Paris and Berlin are MUCH more suitable friends than Washington, no??? The issue is expected to be one of the most politically sensitive in the European parliamentâs June elections. In his book Mr Bolkestein says: "In the east, there is a geo- political need for a buffer zone between the EU and Russia, which might be formed by the countries that do not belong to either bloc." A similar buffer would also be advantageous "in order to cushion the Union against Syria, Iran and Iraq". Officials confirmed he was referring to Turkey. He also says that once Turkey was a member, it would be hard to deny membership to a country such as Ukraine. "The Ukraine is more European than Turkey," he told the Financial Times. Mr Bolkestein, who hopes to have his mandate renewed when the Commission stands down in October, qualified the remarks in his book, saying that Turkish membership with the EU could "export stability". He said that the extension of the EU to the east would limit further integration, although the Unionâs key economic competencies - the single market, trade policy and competition policy - could continue. Mr Bolkestein said the EU needed to concentrate on its core tasks to reconnect with its citizens, including bolstering economic growth. He also criticised French and German economic reforms, saying they had "not gone far enough" and that the so-called Rhineland economic model pursued by the two countries was "responsible for unemployment of 8-9 per cent". heâs right about that part. Posted by: rkb 2004-03-08 |
| http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=27659 |