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Turkey and the European Union
Introduction
Turkey was officially accepted as a
possible candidate for EU membership in December 1999, and in 2002 the European
Council stated that if Turkey
met the ‘Copenhagen’
criterion by 2004, it would immediately open negotiations. Since 1999, and in
particular since the AKP government’s election in 2002, Turkey has
introduced radical reforms promoting democratisation, and has made considerable
efforts concerning human rights. However, these reforms are still not complete,
and there are problems concerning their implementation in many areas, including
within the area of human rights. In other words, judicial reform, according to
the European Commission, remains insufficient.
This paper will be considering Turkey’s
possible entrance into the EU through a brief historical view of the country’s
political program, the questions that are being raised concerning any future
acceptance as a member state, and Turkey’s present position in relation
to its possible candidature. It will also be considering the significant
impacts Turkey’s
accession would have on the Union, how such an
enlargement could be managed, and how this would affect the future of the
European Union.
