Should Turkey be a part of "Europe?"

Over half a century ago, the issue of Turkey becoming a part of “Europe” first arose. I use quotation marks because the notion of Europe differs depending in what context it is being discussed. In this particular context, I am referring to “Europe” as a supranational form of identity for individuals living on the geographical continent of Europe.

So, in 1959, Turkey first asked “Europe” if it could join. This was before the European Union existed—Turkey was applying for membership in the European Economic Community, the precursor to the European Union. Not much progress was made over the next decades. In 1974, Turkey invaded Cyprus in response to Greek efforts to annex the island (this will be important shortly). The European Council, another supranational body, recognized Turkey as a candidate in 1999, and in 2004, negotiations to allow Turkey into the European Union finally opened.

That was seven years ago. As of now, Turkey is still nowhere near joining the exclusive European club, mainly due to Turkey’s sour relationship with Cyprus. In 2006, a large portion of the negotiations to accept Turkey into the EU were blocked because of this one issue. Negotiations have continued in other areas unrelated to the issue, but the European Union is refusing to reopen the remaining aspects of negotiation until Turkey is on better terms with Cyprus. There is just one minor problem, though: Turkey won’t recognize Cyprus as having the right to even exist as an independent nation-state, and Cyprus won’t open up to Turkey.

Right now, there are several different potential outcomes for this whole issue.  The European Union could allow Turkey to join, or could it could deny Turkey membership (which has never happened to a country formally recognized as a candidate). Of course, for either of these possible outcomes to happen, negotiations would need to reopen. And for this to occur, so says the European Union at least, Turkey and Cyprus need to warm up to each other. As there is no particular sign of this happening any time soon, there are other possible solutions. One could be to incorporate Turkey into some committees of the European Union, such as the foreign and security policies, but to not grant it full membership. This wouldn’t really be productive in the long run—doing so is basically coming to terms with the stalemate, and pushing it back even further. Another possible solution would be to give Turkey an ultimatum to meet certain criteria, and see what happens. If they could meet those criteria, negotiations could open, and if they don’t, well…who knows. The only current truth to the matter is that Turkey wants to join the European Union, and “Europe” can’t make up its mind as to whether or not Turkey should be allowed to join.

David Cameron, the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, is a strong advocate of allowing Turkey to join, whereas Angela Merkel, the Chancellor of Germany, and Nicolas Sarkozy, the President of France, are adamantly opposed. The sentiments of these certain leaders actually come as no surprise, though. Turkey is a primarily Muslim nation and, should it gain membership, could completely change the face of the European Union, and indeed of “Europe” itself. The United Kingdom stresses pluralism and multiculturalism while Germany and France stress nationalism and assimilation, playing into the larger concept of a unified European identity. Put as simply as possible, Merkel and Sarkozy feel that Turkey should not join the European Union because it does not fit with their vision of an ideal European identity. Critics point out that these feelings are racist and that they only exist because the majority of Turks are Muslims. Whatever the reason for being averse to or in favor of Turkey’s membership, the rest of the European Union is similarly torn, just like these three leaders.

This whole debate brings to mind a few questions, starting with how Turkey’s inclusion would affect the notion of “Europe”? Allowing Turkey to join would show that the European Union is not stuck in its own notion of itself, and that it has overcome the historical fear of this cultural and political Other. How would such a decision affect the relationship between the Middle East and Europe? Turkey could potentially serve as a bridge between the two regions; acceptance could perhaps lead towards friendlier terms between the European Union and the Middle East.

But there are more questions to be asked. Allow me to play devil’s advocate. Does the European Union really even need Turkey? Turkey’s economy and military are strong, but the list of qualifications a nation-state must achieve to join the European Union is 160,000 pages long. What real difference would Turkey’s acceptance make besides geographically extending “Europe?” Or, in other words, Turkey would have to conform to current-Europe’s standards in order to join, which could thereby make it so similar to the members of the European Union that it loses the identity which sets it aside from the European Union in the first place. What is the point, then, of adding Turkey? Conversely, does Turkey really need the European Union? Some economies in the European Union are strong, but others are horrendous (Ireland, Portugal, Greece). As a whole, the European economy is rather unpredictable. Does Turkey really want to run the risk of getting sucked into a potential European Union economic collapse?

As you can see, this issue of Turkey joining the European Union is extremely complex, going far beyond a conversation such as Turkey saying “We want to join” and the European Union saying “Great! Come on in!” or “Sorry, not this time. Maybe when you’re older.” There is a broad range of factors that goes into a global issue such as this one, and I can hardly do it justice in a single column. All I can say is that the current situation brings no benefit to anyone. Someone just needs to take the first step, whether it is Turkey acknowledging Cyprus’s right to exist, Cyprus forgiving Turkey, the European Union moving past this little squabble and finally reopening negotiations, or some other solution taking shape. Do I think Turkey should be allowed to join? I don’t know. It doesn’t matter what I think.  I just want to see something get done.