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EUROPEAN ARMENIAN FEDERATION
For Justice and Democracy
Avenue de la Renaissance 10
B - 1000 BRUXELLES
Tel: +32 (0) 2 732 70 26
Tel./Fax: +32 (0) 2 732 70 27
E-mail: [email protected]
Web: http://www.eafjd.org
PRESS RELEASE
For Immediate Release
December 17th, 2004
Contact: Talline Tachdjian
Tel.: +32 (0)2 732 70 27
EU/TURKEY: EUROPE CAPITULATES WITHOUT CONDITIONS
BRUSSELS, BELGIUM - The European Council, in a meeting earlier today
in Brussels, voted to open discussions, without any preconditions,
on Turkey's future admission to the European Union. The process is
set to begin on October 3, 2005.
Debate preceding the European Council vote were heated, with Turkey's
failure to recognize Cyprus the primary obstacle. The specific point
of contention was the Turkish Prime Minister's refusal to sign a
draft Customs Agreement between Turkey and the ten new members of the
European Union. Turkey's signature would have implicitly recognized
the Cypriot State. In the end, the European Council yielded to Turkish
demands, agreeing to postpone this signature to next October.
The Council decided to open talks with Turkey despite the fact that
Turkey fell short of meeting the clearly identified expectations of the
European Parliament, as adopted in a resolution this past Wednesday.
Among these are calls for Turkey's recognition of the Armenian
Genocide, recognition of an independent Cyprus, progress on the
Kurdish question, and human rights concerns. Significantly, European
Council members did not even raise the Parliament's recommendations
at their meeting.
In a dramatic development that lowers the bar for Turkey's eventual
acceptance into the Union, the Council abandoned its traditional
consensus model, in which one nation could essentially veto Turkey's
membership. In its place, they stipulated that fully one third of the
EU members states would need to object before negotiations are halted.
"These were not negotiations; this was a surrender. The idea of an
integrated Europe has been seriously compromised," declared Laurent
Leylekian, Executive Director of the European Armenian Federation.
"This unfortunate result is due to the weakness of the European Union's
political structures and the failure of leadership on the part of
European heads of state in standing up the Ankara's inflexibility
and outright rejection of European values."
"We are, of course, gratified that our efforts over the last several
years have successfully placed the Armenian Genocide and Turkey's
blockade of Armenia on the agenda of the highest levels of discussions
concerning Turkey's possible acceptance into the European Union.
However, in light of the failure of European leaders to stand up
against Turkey's aggressive and denialist government, we call on
citizens of the European Union to safeguard Europe's values through
the exercise their democratic rights." added Leylekian.
#####
For Justice and Democracy
Avenue de la Renaissance 10
B - 1000 BRUXELLES
Tel: +32 (0) 2 732 70 26
Tel./Fax: +32 (0) 2 732 70 27
E-mail: [email protected]
Web: http://www.eafjd.org
PRESS RELEASE
For Immediate Release
December 17th, 2004
Contact: Talline Tachdjian
Tel.: +32 (0)2 732 70 27
EU/TURKEY: EUROPE CAPITULATES WITHOUT CONDITIONS
BRUSSELS, BELGIUM - The European Council, in a meeting earlier today
in Brussels, voted to open discussions, without any preconditions,
on Turkey's future admission to the European Union. The process is
set to begin on October 3, 2005.
Debate preceding the European Council vote were heated, with Turkey's
failure to recognize Cyprus the primary obstacle. The specific point
of contention was the Turkish Prime Minister's refusal to sign a
draft Customs Agreement between Turkey and the ten new members of the
European Union. Turkey's signature would have implicitly recognized
the Cypriot State. In the end, the European Council yielded to Turkish
demands, agreeing to postpone this signature to next October.
The Council decided to open talks with Turkey despite the fact that
Turkey fell short of meeting the clearly identified expectations of the
European Parliament, as adopted in a resolution this past Wednesday.
Among these are calls for Turkey's recognition of the Armenian
Genocide, recognition of an independent Cyprus, progress on the
Kurdish question, and human rights concerns. Significantly, European
Council members did not even raise the Parliament's recommendations
at their meeting.
In a dramatic development that lowers the bar for Turkey's eventual
acceptance into the Union, the Council abandoned its traditional
consensus model, in which one nation could essentially veto Turkey's
membership. In its place, they stipulated that fully one third of the
EU members states would need to object before negotiations are halted.
"These were not negotiations; this was a surrender. The idea of an
integrated Europe has been seriously compromised," declared Laurent
Leylekian, Executive Director of the European Armenian Federation.
"This unfortunate result is due to the weakness of the European Union's
political structures and the failure of leadership on the part of
European heads of state in standing up the Ankara's inflexibility
and outright rejection of European values."
"We are, of course, gratified that our efforts over the last several
years have successfully placed the Armenian Genocide and Turkey's
blockade of Armenia on the agenda of the highest levels of discussions
concerning Turkey's possible acceptance into the European Union.
However, in light of the failure of European leaders to stand up
against Turkey's aggressive and denialist government, we call on
citizens of the European Union to safeguard Europe's values through
the exercise their democratic rights." added Leylekian.
#####