Turkey knocks at Europe's door

Despite this, Erdogan is being received all over Europe - and in Washington by President Bush - as though he, and not his deputy, Abdullah Gul, were prime minister. Earlier this week, Erdogan accused Europe of having a double standard when it comes to Turkey.

Rusen Cakir, a veteran journalist who covers the country's Islamic movement, says that other than religion, Turks cannot see a compelling reason why they should be left out, when countries such as Slovakia, Slovenia, Latvia and Lithuania are being ushered in.

"The religious and cultural issue is the leading issue," Mr. Cakir says. "In the Western mind, before there was political Islam, the Muslim was always the 'other.' "

European officials have tried to deflect the focus from religious differences. But former French president Valéry Giscard d'Estaing raised Turkish suspicions when he told a French newspaper that Turkey was not a European country and that inviting it into the EU would mean "the end of Europe." He pointed out that 95 percent of Turkey's land mass lies in Asia.

"This really borders on orientalism, if not racism," says Ali Carkoglu, research director for the Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation.

European officials say Copenhagen's decision will hinge on proof of more change in Turkey. "There are a number of criteria which have not been fully met," says Luigi Narbone, a political officer with the European delegation to Turkey in Ankara. "In freedom of association and freedom of expression, the fulfillment of priorities in our opinion has only been partial."

The AK Party has just introduced a package of legislation of reforms, aimed at stopping torture and loosening restrictions on speech. The new parliament has also began the process of revoking a law that prevents anyone with a criminal record from serving in high office, paving the way for Erdogan to move into the prime minister's seat in two to three months.

But Turks complain that other countries, such as Spain and Greece, were let in without having to jump through so many hoops first. "Europe used the carrot of membership as a pull factor" to make social and economic reforms, says Mr. Carkoglu.

The Turks were first offered the prospect of membership in 1963, when most of the current inductees were still behind the Iron Curtain. Turkey feels the rewards for its loyalty to democratic, free-market Europe ought to be greater. Otherwise, Erdogan has said, "Turkey might have to rethink its path" - including possibly its NATO membership.

Whether Turkey gets a conditional promise to review its bid in 2004 or 2005, or a firmer commitment may not seem crucial in Brussels.

But Turkey worries that by 2004, the 10 newcomers will add to the number of member countries deciding on Turkey's accession - even one European parliament's veto could keep Turkey out.

"When those countries become members, they might reject Turkey from the point of view of competitiveness," says Professor Dogan Kargul, an Istanbul University economist. He says Europe sees Turkey as "some kind of Middle Eastern country ... waiting to collect our benefits from the rich countries."

Page: 1 | 2