Politicians’ stance raises hope for EU
Güncelleme Tarihi:
by Fulya Özerkan
OluÅŸturulma Tarihi: Mart 10, 2009 00:00
BRUSSELS - The recent visits of Turkey’s ruling and opposition party leaders to Brussels, and the appointment of a chief negotiator for EU talks receive positive reactions from Europe, says the head of a Turkish business group in Brussels.
Turkish political leaders' approach to the European Union sparked positive responses from European headquarters and were seen as Ankara's willingness to make membership a high priority ahead of local elections, according to the head of a leading Turkish business group in Brussels.Â
"This is a very positive development. Turkey's national interests require it to stick to the EU membership process," Bahadır Kaleağası, international coordinator of the Turkish Industrialists' and Businessmen's Association or TÜSİAD, told Hürriyet Daily News & Economic Review in an interview.
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's visit to Brussels in January after a five-year break has reversed the negative winds and boosted hopes the government is returning to the EU agenda. Brussels has long criticized Ankara for the slow pace of reforms. Erdoğan's itinerary included high-level talks with officials from different European institutions, including the bloc's foreign policy chief, Javier Solana, European Parliament President Hans-Gert Pöttering, as well as different political groups in the European Parliament.
The most promising of all is the appointment of Egemen Bağış as chief negotiator for EU talks, saving the foreign minister from bearing two hats, according to EU circles. Bağış is seen as the postman between the government and European counterparts due to his closeness to the prime minister. "The government's latest steps are late but still encouraging and we thoroughly support them," said Kaleağası.
Other parties on EU track
The increasing openness to the EU has not been limited to the ruling party. The main opposition Republican People's Party, or CHP, leader Deniz Baykal also made his way to Brussels last month and earlier the party opened an office there. During his visit, Baykal gave assurances his party was not against Turkey's democratization and European Union membership.
Kaleağası said other opposition parties in Parliament including the Nationalist Movement Party and the Democratic Society Party were closely monitoring the EU process and said the all-out mobilization demonstrated that Turkey is taking negotiations seriously. Regarding the membership, he said, "We must be ready by 2014. This is an important date for Turkey."
Kaleağası said he expected the negotiations to speed up following the local elections. "Turkey has not even one minute to lose while the world is going through a financial crisis and the internal balances within the EU are re-shaping."
In addition to Brussels, TÃœSÄ°AD has offices in Berlin, Paris, Washington and Beijing. The business group is undertaking a number of projects including promoting Turkey abroad to convince European politicians and develop a positive public opinion about the country's EU accession.
"This is a very positive development. Turkey's national interests require it to stick to the EU membership process," Bahadır Kaleağası, international coordinator of the Turkish Industrialists' and Businessmen's Association or TÜSİAD, told Hürriyet Daily News & Economic Review in an interview.
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's visit to Brussels in January after a five-year break has reversed the negative winds and boosted hopes the government is returning to the EU agenda. Brussels has long criticized Ankara for the slow pace of reforms. Erdoğan's itinerary included high-level talks with officials from different European institutions, including the bloc's foreign policy chief, Javier Solana, European Parliament President Hans-Gert Pöttering, as well as different political groups in the European Parliament.
The most promising of all is the appointment of Egemen Bağış as chief negotiator for EU talks, saving the foreign minister from bearing two hats, according to EU circles. Bağış is seen as the postman between the government and European counterparts due to his closeness to the prime minister. "The government's latest steps are late but still encouraging and we thoroughly support them," said Kaleağası.
Other parties on EU track
The increasing openness to the EU has not been limited to the ruling party. The main opposition Republican People's Party, or CHP, leader Deniz Baykal also made his way to Brussels last month and earlier the party opened an office there. During his visit, Baykal gave assurances his party was not against Turkey's democratization and European Union membership.
Kaleağası said other opposition parties in Parliament including the Nationalist Movement Party and the Democratic Society Party were closely monitoring the EU process and said the all-out mobilization demonstrated that Turkey is taking negotiations seriously. Regarding the membership, he said, "We must be ready by 2014. This is an important date for Turkey."
Kaleağası said he expected the negotiations to speed up following the local elections. "Turkey has not even one minute to lose while the world is going through a financial crisis and the internal balances within the EU are re-shaping."
In addition to Brussels, TÃœSÄ°AD has offices in Berlin, Paris, Washington and Beijing. The business group is undertaking a number of projects including promoting Turkey abroad to convince European politicians and develop a positive public opinion about the country's EU accession.