Browsing by Subject "Turkey and the European Union"

Now showing 1 - 4 of 4

Open Access
European energy policy and Turkey's energy role : will the accession process be affected?
(2010) Sever, Seda Duygu
Increasing concerns for energy security urge the European Union countries to develop common energy policies. In this respect, diversification of energy suppliers and transit routes emerges as the most feasible policy for the EU to address the problems arising out of its energy dependency. At this point, Turkey’s strategic geographical position offers an energy bridge which has the potential of linking the EU with diversified suppliers. This thesis, examines European efforts to create a common energy policy and Turkey’s role in European energy security strategies. Based on the views that Turkey’s energy bridge position will accelerate the accession process and will bring full membership, this study questions whether energy can really be a factor for Turkey’s membership. Taking into consideration the impact of the absorption capacity and negative European public support on the long candidacy of Turkey, in addition to the examination of relevant literature, the answer to this question is investigated through the analysis of European public opinion. Relying on official Turkish and EU documents, official statistics and annual Eurobarometer surveys, contrary to the expectations, the analysis reaches to the conclusion that for full membership, Turkey’s energy role for Europe is an important yet insufficient factor on its own.
Open Access
International dimension of democratization: the impact of EU credibility on democratic consolidation of Turkey
(2008) Lüleci, Rüya
The European Union (EU) has been a decisive actor in Turkey’s long journey of democratization, and this is due to substantial impact of the EU democratic conditionality on Turkish reform process. However, whether this effect will be persistent or not, is depended on the existence of a credible EU approach towards Turkey. Slow down in Turkey’s democratic consolidation in the post- 2004 period due to increasingly sided and discriminatory approaches of the EU as regards to Turkey’s accession process is an indicator of this fact. In this respect, analyzing three different period (pre- 1999, 1999-2004 and post- 2004) of EU-Turkey relations, the thesis investigates how the variance in the credibility of the EU conditionality affects the variance in the speed and quality of democratic consolidation in Turkey.
Open Access
Kemalism meets the Copenhagen Criteria : the emergence of Neo-Kemalism
(2005) Günay, Defne
Turkey’s long-drawn-out journey came to another turning point after getting 3 October 2005 as a date for the launch of accession talks with the European Union. This decision made by the Union on 17 December 2004 was an upshot of huge steps taken by subsequent Turkish governments in terms of transforming its democracy so as to comply with the Copenhagen criteria. This wave of democratization inevitably has raised questions about the fate of Kemalism, which has been largely penetrated by these reforms. When these reforms are coupled with some allegations both from the EU and from within Turkey as being a barrier to Turkey’s EU membership, it became inevitable to put Kemalism and its fate into interrogation. This thesis aims to answer the question of how and why prevalent interpretation of Kemalism is being strained by the EU conditionality that permeates fundamentals of Kemalism.
Open Access
Turkey's cultural integration with the European Union (Religion as a factor)
(2007) Gürçel, Tuğba
Turkey’s integration with the European Union has been investigated through different lenses. When Turkey gained candidacy status in 1999 Helsinki Summit, the discussion about Turkey’s cultural/religious dissimilarity with the Union became more noticeable. In this context, Turkey’s compatibility with the European norms, with specific reference to different religion, needed an attentive investigation. Turkey’s fidelity to laicism in the existence of a majority Muslim population is of great significance in Turkey’s cultural integration with the EU. The fundamentality of religion factor for the European identity and potential contribution of laic Turkey to this identity with its different religion/culture are the major issues that are tried to be analyzed. This thesis also tries to display what laic Turkey will bring into the EU in cultural terms in the case of its full membership. It is concluded that Turkey’s integration with the EU is at a bottle neck because of its different cultural/religious tradition. Nevertheless, it is not a deadlock. This impediment can be overcome with proper understanding of each other and with willingness for integration that embraces both European and Turkish cultures.