Press Release

PRESS RELEASE The Center for International and European Studies (CIES) at Kadir Has University, the European People’s Party (EPP) Group in the European Parliament, and Kadir Has University’s Department of Economics organized an International Conference on “Turkey on the European Doorstep” on Friday, May 11, 2012. The focus of the Conference was on assessing assessing the current and future state of the European Union and the evolving relationship between Turkey and the Union. It was opened by Professor Mustafa Aydın, the Rector of Kadir Has University and Dr. Eleni Theocharous, Member of the European Parliament from Cyprus and a member of the EEP Group in the European Parliament. A recent publication by the EPP Group on “Turkey on the European Doorstep” was also presented for the first time to a wider Turkish audience. The first panel discussion, chaired by Dr. Theocharous, focussed on “The State of the Union: Recovery or Further Turmoil?” In this session, Geoffrey Van Orden, a Member of the European Parliament from the United Kingdom and the Vice-Chairman of the ECR Group, considered that the existing EU model is flawed to handle the financial crisis. He suggested that there is a need for different and overlapping circles in order to deal with the financial management of the crisis and to help Turkey eventually integrate. Van Orden does not think that the recipe for overcoming the crisis is ‘more Europe’. In fact he believes that there is a need to move beyond the original rationale behind European Integration which was based on the avoidance of further war in Europe. While the EU is a good idea, it needs to be reshaped in order to meet today’s challenges. For Joost Langedijk, a former MEP and currently a columnist for Today’s Zaman, a two speed or multiple-speed Europe is inevitable while a Growth Pact is necessary to complement the Stability Pact. Langedijk also suggested that the rise of populism, extremism and Islamophobia in Europe is a phenomenon meriting much concern indicative of the failure of the elite driven European integration process. He assumes that Europe will muddle through until it gets it right. Sedat Aybar, the Head of the Department of Economics at Kadir Has University suggested that the policies of austerity that were instrumental in causing the economic crisis in Europe and in particular in the countries of Southern Europe cannot be the same as the remedies. In other words, austerity has to be replaced by Keynesian policies of growth. Eleni Theocharous focussed her intervention of the very real need to have Turkey accede to the European Union. Upon Turkey’s accession, the capital of the EU should move from Brussels to Istanbul. Theocharous also concentrated on the need for compromise in the resolution of the Cyprus question. The second session, chaired by Dr. Dimitrios Triantaphyllou, the Director of the Center for International and European Studies at Kadir Has University, was titled “Future Enlargement: Wither Turkey?” In his intervention, Dimitrios Triantaphyllou stressed the need for a virtuous circle in the EU accession process with Turkey. Part of problem is that there is a proximity/distance paradigm at play due to the geographic and conceptual distance from the core of Europe for Turkey. This has led to Turkey’s links to the West to be based on securitization rather than a normative context. Also the open ended nature of the negotiation process does not help it much. Turkey also seems to propound a rhetoric of victimization vis-a-vis the European Union which does not assist it to properly define its objectives. Ambassador Onur Öymen, a seasoned diplomat and a former Deputy of the Turkish Grand National Assembly, focussed on the semantics of Turkey’s relations with the Union and the great number of statements by EU leaders stressing the cultural differences between the two sides. As a result, this emphasis on the cultural differences acts a major stumbling block. Ambassador Oymen stressed the need for consistency and fairness on the part of the European Union suggesting that these are core values for Turkey. Oymen also iterated that Turkey’s place is not the periphery of Europe but at its core. Dr. Yiannos Charalambides, an Advisor to Dr. Theocharous, stated that Turkey’s potential to become the leading EU power upon its accession frightens the other leading EU powers. He also suggested that Turkey’s accession is not only significant for the cohesion of the EU but will also impact on Turkey’s internal cohesion. Finally, Charalambides presented a new methodology and paradigm for a win-win resolution of the Cyprus issue where both the EU and NATO have a crucial role to play. Finally, Serhat Güvenç, Associate Professor of International Relations at Kadir Has University, stated that the recent change at the helm of the French Republic will help in advancing Turkish-EU relations with a probable lifting of the French veto on four chapters of the accession process. He suggested that a piecemeal approach at this stage might be the best way to relaunch the stalled negotiation process in order to alleviate some of the frustrations from the gridlock. Güvenç also concluded that there is a need to find a way for Turkey to find a way to work together as the interests are greater than the bilateral relationship but have implication for the wider global context. Istanbul 11 May 2012 .

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