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Europe
Turkey rejects Sarkozy's "Mediterranean Union"
2007-05-19
Turkey on Thursday refused to accept membership of a "Mediterranean Union" suggested by France's new president, Nicolas Sarkozy, as an alternative to joining the European Union. Sarkozy, who took office on Wednesday, is a strong opponent of Ankara's EU bid and has proposed instead a loose 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 negotiations and is in a negotiation process," Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul told reporters. "Erecting obstacles to this negotiation process would mean not respecting signatures, commitments previously made. I do not expect this to happen."

Earlier this week, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan warned Sarkozy that hostility toward Turkey's bid to join the European Union would fan anti-Europe sentiments among Turks and damage bilateral ties. "Mr. Sarkozy has to overcome his prejudices. ... If we are to unite civilizations within the EU, if we say the EU is not a Christian club, then Mr. Sarkozy should review his opinions," Erdogan said at the annual assembly of the media watchdog International Press Institute in Istanbul. "My people have concerns vis-à-vis the European Union. ... The negative stance of a country (on Turkey's accession) leads to a negative stance against that country here. A mistaken voice to be raised on this issue will change the Turkish people’s attitude toward France."
Posted by:Fred

#5  Turkey has to meet EU standards on a whole host of hair-splitting legal and economic technicalities before it can be allowed to join. In the unlikely event that they manage to meet all of those requirements, the EU can bring up the matter of Cyprus to kill off the matter once and for all.
Posted by: Sonar   2007-05-19 13:59  

#4  What's the big deal?
Turks gotta snap up the serperate but equal deal, best they're gonna get.

Posted by: Shipman   2007-05-19 12:21  

#3  Sarkozy has said what I've been advocating for a while, that Turkey will never fit in the EU, or will always be disdained by the other members

Turkey should not only join with Iraq as the new core of a Middle East Common Market, where it will rightfully be a dominant member, much like Germany is to the EU, but in starting a new market, it will be able to insist on the secularism near and dear to Turkey, among new members.

It even gets the added bonus of being the gateway between the two markets--Instanbul doing old Constantinople one better--connecting East and West *and* the Middle East.

Turkey would be in the cat bird seat.
Posted by: Anonymoose   2007-05-19 09:21  

#2  Pretty ugly comments from a country seeking to be accepted into the EU. Pretty stupid, too.

"...hostility toward Turkey's bid to join the European Union would fan anti-Europe sentiments among Turks..."

This "or else" tone makes Turkey look like the rest of the dime-a-dozen threatening Islamist regimes.

EU Rantburgers-could you shed a little light on just what this "negotiation process" entails? He speaks as if negotiations MUST lead to Turkey joining the EU.
Posted by: Jules   2007-05-19 09:18  

#1  If we are to unite civilizations within the EU, if we say the EU is not a Christian club, then Mr. Sarkozy should review his opinions
There in lies the rub Mr. Gul -- the thin veneer of "civilization" is peeling of your nation as we speak.
Posted by: regular joe   2007-05-19 07:24  

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