Reactions to Turkey report supportive but cautious

The Commission's decision was heralded by
several politicians worldwide as a breakthrough, although
critical comments were also voiced, especially in the
European Parliament.

In 
Parliament

, President Josep Borrell (PES, ES) announced that the MEPs
will hold a debate on the Commission's recommendations at
their plenary session in Strasbourg on 26 October.
Parliament will then adopt a report before the European
Council takes its decision in December.

Joost Lagendijk, the co-chairman of
the 
Turkish Parliament-European Parliament (EP) Joint
Parliamentary Committee

, welcomed the recommendation and said that entry talks
should start as soon as possible. He said that while the
proposed control mechanism was positive, "the Commission
exceeded the limits by recommending the suspension of free
movement of Turkish labour force. It is against EU laws and
it is dangerous". Lagendijk went on to say that "I also
hope that the Heads of State will not bow to the pressure
to thwart the talks from the outset by describing them as
'open-ended'. Turkey has applied for membership of the EU,
not for a special partnership. The Conservatives should not
attempt to overlook that fact".

The Chairman of the 
EPP-ED Parliamentary Group

, Hans-Gert Poettering, said that "If Turkey becomes a
member of the European Union, it will be a different
Union." "If at their meeting in December heads of state and
government decided to open negotiations with Turkey, this
should not imply a conclusion one way or the other" said
Poettering. "What I mean in concrete terms is that
negotiations could lead to membership, or not to
membership, or to other forms of co-operation, for instance
to a 'privileged partnership'."

The 
Socialist Group (PES)

in Parliament believes that "there should be no automatic
accession" for Turkey, and that this enlargement process
"must be regarded as special". According to MEP Martin
Schulz (DE), transition periods on labour mobility,
agriculture and structural support would be required.

Parliament's 
ALDE Group

highlighted three key points for the negotiations: their
opening was no guarantee of success; there would need to be
close scrutiny of progress on human rights matters; the
process should lead to greater harmony between the
Christian, Muslim and Jewish faiths.

According to the 
Greens/EFA Group

, open-ended negotiations should not be the answer. Turkey
had applied for membership, and thus both sides should
enter the talks with heads held high, said Daniel
Cohn-Bendit (DE). The outcome was not certain, but "I hope
our children will see Turkey as a member of the EU," he
said.

Jens-Peter BONDE (DK) of the 
Independence and Democracy Group

said that he believed the adoption of the draft
Constitution and the accession of Turkey were mutually
incompatible. A major concern was that by adding a large
new country to the Constitution's model which already, in
his view, favoured large countries, the small Member States
would be excluded from decision-making.

"If the European Council and (EU)
countries decide in December that Turkey fulfils the
criteria, opening membership negotiations in the second
half of 2005 is an option," the 
Dutch EU Presidency

said in a communiqué.

In Ankara, 
Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gül

commented that it was a "historic decision for Turkey and
for Europe".

Turkey's 
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan

expressed his confidence that the EU's leaders would agree
at their December summit formally to open talks in early
2005. However, he demanded equal rules with all other
candidates and criticised the decision's conditional
nature: "If negotiations are suspended this would show a
lack of respect for Turkey's democratisation process and
would conflict with the EU's own principles."

The 
United States

, keen to have its NATO ally Turkey into the EU, welcomed
the recommendation. "We have long supported Turkey's
eventual membership in the European Union and would
certainly welcome a European Council decision in December
to set an early date to begin accession talks," said State
Department spokesman Adam Ereli.

British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw

praised the decision while on a visit to the Middle East.
"Turkey has undergone remarkable changes over the last few
years, putting in place the extensive reforms the EU asked
of it. The EU must now deliver its side of the bargain," he
said, adding that "the European Council should agree in
December to open negotiations without delay".

"We warmly welcome the commission's
decision," 
German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer

said, adding that he was confident "the political risks of
opening the door to Turkey could be foreseen".

Italy's Deputy Prime Minister Gianfranco
Fini

said that he was "personally convinced that it would be
fair if Turkey joined under certain conditions" which had
always applied to other candidate countries.

Calling Turkey "the best example of a
democratic state in the Islamic world", 
Polish Foreign Minister Wlodzimierz
Cimoszewicz

said that Poland "will support Turkey's aspirations. Of
course, the accession negotiations should stipulate a whole
series of obligations for Turkey, as was the case with
us".

Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh
Rasmussen

said that the decision did not amount to a "blank cheque"
and added that "a particularly long transition period"
should precede Turkey's accession. He said that it might be
necessary "to limit, or even stop, the free circulation of
Turkish workers if it upsets the equilibrium of the
European labour market".

The 
Union of Industrial and Employers' Confederations
of Europe (UNICE)

"takes note" of the Commission's decision and reports and
"will study them". Secretary General Philippe de Buck said
that "UNICE hopes that, when the Member States meet in
December, the situation will be such that a consensus will
be possible as regards the opening of accession
negotiations in the best possible conditions".

The World Bank

welcomed the Commission's "positive report" and stated that
it "stands ready to assist Turkey in this important process
towards integration with Europe".

Estonia, Greece, Latvia, Spain and
Sweden also expressed their support for Turkey's road to
Europe.

Below is a sample from editorials of
major news operations:

Guardian

: "Turkey has quite a way to go yet on its journey to
Europe. But this is a welcome, highly significant and
probably irreversible step." (
Turkey meets the test

)

Telegraph

: "The European Commission's green light to accession talks
with Turkey, if endorsed by European leaders in December,
heralds a potential transformation in Europe as momentous
as this year's great eastward expansion." (
Turkey - come on in

)

International Herald Tribune

: "Turkey won a victory in Brussels on Wednesday, but it
was only a victory of sorts." (
But there's still a long way to go

)

Le Monde

: "The Turkish issue is first and foremost about Europe
itself [...]. If the EU wants to keep functioning with more
than 30 members, it should foresee radical reforms going
much further than the timid ones provided for in the
Constitution." (
Editorial

)

Les Echos

: Expresses a similar view, claiming that the debate about
Turkey is a "maturity test" for Europe, which should at
last "start defining its future". (
Jeux de rôles euro-turcs

)

Libération

: Turkey "will have to get used to living under close
scrutiny", emphasising that the negotiations are supposed
to be an open process that the EU could suspend at any
moment should Turkey lapse back into bad habits. "Yet one
can hardly see Ankara making such a mistake now that it can
seize the holy grail." (
Ankara, en route vers le Graal

)

Neue Zürcher Zeitung

: "It would indeed be an advantage for the future of Europe
and the West as a whole, if Turkey could be successfully
integrated in Europe. It is certainly worth a try." (
Die Türkei prüft Europa

)

The 
Turkish Industrialists and Businessmens Association
(TÜSIAD)

called the decision a "historical step", emphasising that
the scheduled December Council decision "will also be a
crucial test for the EUs political maturity as well as
ethical responsibility". Turkey's 
Independent Industrialists' and Businessmen's
Association (MUSIAD)

believes that while "Turkey enters a new process, full
membership is not close". Chairman Omer Bolat also warned
that the "foreign policy of the Turkish government should
not be indexed only to the EU". 

On 6 October, the Commission published its
recommendation that Turkey be put on the path leading to
full membership of the EU.

EU official documents

• Commission DG
  Enlargement:Recommendation of the European
  Commission on Turkeys progress towards
  accessionCOM(2004) 656 final [FR] [FR] [DE]
• Commission DG
  Enlargement:2004 Regular Report on Turkeys
  progress towards accessionSEC(2004) 1201 [FR] [FR] [DE]
• Commission DG
  Enlargement:Commission recommends to start
  negotiations with Turkey under certain
  conditions
• Parliament:Commission President Prodi's speech on
  the Commission's report and recommendation on
  Turkey's application
• Parliament:"Qualified yes" to opening
  negotiations with Turkey
• EPP-ED Group:Turkish membership would dramatically
  alter the European Union - If negotiations
  are to start, these must be 'open' in terms
  of their conclusion, Hans-Gert Poettering
  (6 October 2004) [FR] [FR] [DE]

EU Actors positions

• TÜSIAD:European Commission's Report Is A
  Historical Step In The Right Direction In
  EU-Turkey Relations(6 October 2004)
• UNICE:European Commission recommendation on
  Turkey - UNICE reaction(6 October 2004)

Press articles

• FAZ:EU-Beitritt der Türkei - Prodi:
  Nichts verborgen, vertuscht oder
  verdreht
• Guardian:EU puts Turkey on a long road to
  accession
• TurkishPress:Lagendijk: Entry Talks With Turkey
  Should Start As Soon As Possible
• Pravda:Green light for Turkey
• Scotsman:Turkey clears first hurdle in its bid
  to enter European Union