Turkey EU talks could be frozen
The European Union’s talks with Turkey about future accession could be stalled or stopped completely soon.
A 52 page report by the think tank Friends of Europe contains several possible scenarios for the future of accession talks, with the last two being the most likely, a slowing down of talks, or a complete stop. Turkey has so far refused to let Cypriot ships enter it’s harbours. Turkey does not recognize Cyprus, even though it is an EU member. A majority of Europeans do not want to see Turkey accepted into the European Union. Turkish support for EU membership has also fallen sharply over the last year.
Of the four, the author indicates that the last two scenarios are the most likely as Turkey, facing elections next year, has backed itself into a corner on the Cyprus issue and the EU has four member states prepared to play brinkmanship with the state of negotiations.
The immediate cause of a possible crash in Turkey’s EU talks is because of Ankara’s refusal to open its ports and airports to Greek Cypriot ships although it extended a 1963 customs agreement to cover all member states.
Last year the EU gave an ultimatum that Turkey open its ports by the end of 2006 but prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan continues to insist that it will not make a move until the isolation of Turkish Cypriots is ended – something the EU promised in 2004.
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Administrator @ September 5, 2006