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Ankara: Turkey Becomes Key Partner For Europe In Caucasus

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  • Ankara: Turkey Becomes Key Partner For Europe In Caucasus

    TURKEY BECOMES KEY PARTNER FOR EUROPE IN CAUCASUS:REPORT

    Hurriyet
    Thursday, July 02, 2009 02:58

    BRUSSELS - Turkey is becoming an important partner for the European
    Union in South Caucasus, says a report, urging more cooperation between
    Brussels and Ankara. The European Union's regional policies will
    be successful if it works together with Turkey and supports Turkish
    government's policies in the fragile region, a Polish institute says
    in the report A Polish institute recommended on Wednesday that the
    European Union cooperate with Turkey in the South Caucasus, underlining
    the strategic importance of the region for the EU and Turkey.

    In a report titled "South Caucasus: The Case for Joint Commitment of
    Turkey and the EU," the Polish Institute of International Affairs,
    or PISM, said the EU's regional policies would be successful if it
    worked together with Turkey and supported Ankara's policies in the
    region. Despite many constraints, Turkey was attempting to play a
    more active role in the South Caucasus, the report said.

    "Hence, it has become an important partner for the EU, whose interest
    in the region has been growing over time. Turkey and the EU can
    work together toward reaching the shared goal of creating an area
    of security in the South Caucasus, an outcome instrumental to the
    development of economic projects [with a special emphasis on energy
    issues]," it added.

    Key for stability, economy The PISM said the stability of the region
    was also crucial for the security of Turkey and that the South Caucasus
    region was important for the Turkish economy because it serves as
    the transport route and supply corridor for energy resources from
    the Caspian basin. "The South Caucasus is significant for the EU for
    similar reasons," the report noted.

    In its report, the institute also said the region played a crucial
    role in the EU's energy security because it contributed to the
    diversification not only of energy resources, but also of delivery
    routes. The institute said both Turkey and the EU shared similar
    goals of stability and security in the South Caucasus.

    "These goals include the peaceful settlement of the frozen regional
    conflicts in South Ossetia, Abkhazia and Upper Karabakh; the
    establishment of good governance in those states whose state-building
    processes are still ongoing so as to assure that the region will
    not become a threat in the areas of international organized crime,
    terrorism or drug trafficking," the report said.

    The report said Turkey and the EU could achieve their common goals
    in the South Caucasus if the EU took action to strengthen Turkish
    assets and mitigate the country's weakness. "This could establish
    an implicit division of labor between the two entities," the report
    added. The PISM said Turkey could concentrate on the improvement of
    regional security, consolidating its role as the region's energy hub
    and a model of political and economic development.

    The report also said the South Caucasus states should be aware of
    their weakened international position following the Georgian-Russian
    conflict and the willingness of the new Turkish foreign minister,
    Ahmet Davutoðlu, to implement a new foreign policy based on the
    concept of "zero problems with neighbors" and his readiness to use
    soft measures in order to stabilize the neighboring regions. Also, the
    report said the prospect for engagement in the Armenian-Azerbaijani
    peace process appeared slightly more promising, and some sort of
    resolution of the Karabakh dispute would pave the way for normalization
    of Turkish-Armenian relations.

    The PISM recommended that the EU countries differentiate between
    Armenia and the Armenian diaspora, and said the EU should take a more
    critical stance toward the Armenian diaspora, whose actions were
    harmful to Armenian interests. On the Nabucco natural gas pipeline
    project, which will transport gas from Turkey to Austria via Bulgaria,
    Romania and Hungary, the report added, "If Turkey and other consumer
    countries in the EU jointly negotiated with the producer states from
    the Caspian region, the Turkish partner could be helpful." It also
    said the EU should avoid creating the impression that Turkey no longer
    had any prospect of membership.

    PISMis a foreign policy think-tank based in Warsaw. It provides
    research in international relations for policymakers, academics and
    the Polish public. In 2009, the PISM was listed among the top 50
    non-U.S. think tanks in the world.
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