MEPs quibble over Ankara’s accession hopes

Date: 25/11/04

By David Cronin

SHARP differences emerged this week between left and right-leaning MEPs over what stance the European Parliament should take ahead of next month's decision by EU leaders on opening accession talks with Turkey.

A draft report on the Parliament's position, prepared by Dutchman Camiel Eurlings, has attracted 483 amendments. Because of the wide range of views reflected in them, he is trying to broker a compromise between competing political factions before the assembly's final view is adopted at its 13-16 December plenary session.

Veteran French deputy Alain Lamassoure, a member of the largest political group, the European People's Party (EPP-ED), is leading calls for Turkey to be offered a 'special partnership' with the Union instead of full membership. Under such an arrangement, Turkey could participate in EU programmes but would not be part of its institutions.

Denounced as a “nonsense idea” by Turkey's EU envoy Oguz Demiralp, it nonetheless has support from others in the EPP-ED, particularly from the UK, Austria and Germany.

It also reflects suggestions by Jacques Chirac's Union pour le Mouvement Populaire (UMP) that alternatives to Turkey's EU membership should be explored by leaders at their 16-17 December summit in Brussels.

Yet the view is by no means unanimous, even within the UMP. Ari Vatanen, an MEP with Chirac's party, has tabled an amendment stating that the aim of talks with Turkey should be full membership.

Socialist group leader Martin Schulz led a delegation of MEPs to Ankara this week for discussions with Turkish premier Recep Tayyip Erdogan. A majority of his group supports opening accession talks, as do most of the Green and Liberal Democrat MEPs, as well as many from the European United Left (GUE) group.

But Greek and Greek Cypriot MEPs from across the political spectrum are pushing for strong criticism of Turkey for maintaining 30,000 troops in Cyprus. Cypriot Socialist Panagiotis Beglitis said that these were “stationed on the territory of an EU member state”.

German Green Cem Ozdemir estimated that 75% of MEPs could vote in favour of opening accession talks, but he said that greater attention needed to be paid to the rights of religious minorities in Turkey.

James Elles, a UK Conservative, said that the idea of a special partnership with Turkey “makes a good deal of sense”. He urged the Commission to undertake a study, assessing what impact Turkish membership would have on the EU.

davidcronin@economist.com

Preview of the European Parliament's vote on its position regarding Turkey's EU membership negotiations, to be held at its plenary session, 13-16 December 2004.