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  • Ankara: EU's Turkey Critics Losing Popularity

    EU'S TURKEY CRITICS LOSING POPULARITY

    Today's Zaman
    15 August 2009, Saturday

    The impact of the constant objection by French and German leaders to
    Turkey's European Union membership drive has been revealed through a
    public survey that showed a significant loss of confidence in these
    two countries among the public.

    According to the survey, conducted this month by the Ankara-based
    International Strategic Research Organization (USAK), France is
    third on the list of countries regarded as a threat by the public,
    while there has been a large decrease in Turkish people's opinion of
    Germany as a friendly country.

    Over half the 1,100 interviewees in Ankara, Istanbul, Izmir and
    Bursa -- 56 percent in all -- stated that the biggest obstacle to
    Turkey's entry into the EU was "religious and cultural differences
    and historical prejudices against Turkey."

    The EU opened accession talks with Ankara -- an EU candidate since
    1999 -- in October 2005, but these have been progressing slowly amid
    opposition from France and Germany. The unresolved Cyprus dispute
    and a slowdown of reforms in Turkey are other factors hampering the
    accession process.

    French President Nicolas Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angela
    Merkel are the most high-profile European politicians opposed to
    Turkey's accession. Sarkozy claims Turkey does not belong in Europe,
    while Merkel promotes a "privileged partnership" that falls short of
    membership, a formula Ankara categorically rejects. In Berlin in May,
    Merkel and Sarkozy made a joint statement declaring that they shared
    a common position regarding Turkey's accession to the EU, in that it
    should be offered a privileged partnership, not full EU membership.

    According to a USAK survey held in October 2004, when asked which
    country was the biggest threat to Turkey, only 2.5 percent of Turkish
    people named France. This figure has gradually increased; in December
    2005, it was 11.40 percent but had increased to 12.09 percent this
    month, placing France third overall. France followed the United
    States, which topped the list this month, the second country on the
    list being Israel.

    Noting that France is the only EU member in the first three countries
    on the threat list, USAK experts have suggested that this should not
    be seen as a surprise due to Sarkozy's firm opposition to Turkey's EU
    membership in addition to his country's support for the recognition
    of killings of Anatolian Armenians during World War I as genocide.

    Germany has also suffered a decrease in the Turkish public's
    confidence. In October 2004, 8.2 percent and in December 2005 4.8
    percent of Turkish people said they regarded Germany as a friendly
    country. Yet, in the survey this month, only 0.64 percent of Turkish
    people called Germany a friendly country.

    Last month, in an interview with a Spanish newspaper, Prime Minister
    Recep Tayyip Erdogan recalled that three-quarters of Turkish people
    were in favor of EU membership when the accession negotiations were
    first opened in 2005, while a recent survey showed that now 51.9
    percent of Turkish people would vote for EU membership if a referendum
    were held.

    "We came to this point upon 'nos,' 'perhaps' and 'buts.' Everything
    will change if Chancellor Merkel and President Sarkozy say, 'OK,
    we're ready to accept Turkey when it fulfills all the recommended
    conditions.' Even this would lead to a rise in that percentage among
    people," Erdogan said.

    Despite a considerable lack of confidence in the two leading members
    of the EU, the survey revealed that Turkish people see their future in
    the EU. When asked where Turkey's future lays, 56.36 percent replied
    the EU. In October 2004, this figure was over 61.04 percent.

    US: most feared, most trusted The USAK survey revealed that the United
    States still tops the list of countries which are regarded as a threat
    in Turkish public opinion. Nevertheless, USAK experts stated that
    when a decrease from 29.80 percent to 25.45 percent is considered
    between the December 2005 survey and the one conducted this month,
    it is possible to say that Turkish people have been giving a chance to
    the new policies launched by President Barack Obama's administration.

    Interestingly enough, the same survey, at the same time, showed that
    Turkish people have great confidence in support from the United States
    in case of major difficulties. A quarter of interviewees replied the
    United States when asked which country would lend the biggest support
    to Turkey in the case of internal conflict and natural disaster.

    Only 11 percent of Turkish people, meanwhile, replied Azerbaijan to
    the same question although Azerbaijan topped the list of countries
    regarded as most friendly by the Turkish people.

    USAK experts noted that the United States' and similar countries'
    economic power, capable of offering sufficient assistance in case of
    need, is the most probable reason for this apparent contradiction.

    The survey, meanwhile, also included questions regarding Turkish
    people's approval of the way the country's foreign policy is
    conducted. Almost half, 49.09 percent find Turkish foreign policy
    successful, while 47.27 percent either replied neutrally or said it is
    "unsuccessful."

    According to the survey, the priorities in people's expectations of
    foreign policy are maintenance of security and economic interests.

    USAK also asked interviewees whether they believed that a high number
    of states were drawing up plans for disintegrating their country. The
    number of affirmative replies to this question stood at 64 percent
    in October 2004, at 72 percent in December 2005 and at 54.55 percent
    this month.

    Although there is a decrease in this figure according to
    previous years, this month's results still show a serious lack of
    self-confidence amongst society, USAK experts have warned.
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