France's Resistance to the Membership of Turkey in the European Union Essay

France's Resistance to the Membership of Turkey in the European Union - Essay Example Since 1963, Turkey has had the privilege of being an associate member of the European Union. (ARIKAN, H. 2006). On 14 April 1987, Turkey officially forwarded an application to accede to the European Union. The events that followed the membership bid, has become a major controversy over the last two decades. Turkey, apart from the ten founding members, was one of the first countries to become a member of the Council of Europe in the year 1949. Furthermore, Turkey was also one of the founding members of The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). (JOSEPH, J. S. 2006). Since 1992, Turkey has had an associate membership with the Western European Union. Moreover, Turkey also fulfills its services in the United Nations, as a member of the Western Europe branch of the Western European and Others Group (WEOG). (BELKE 2004). In 1995, a Customs Union Agreement was signed between Turkey and the European Union. At European council’s summit held on 12 December 1999, Turkey was recognized as a candidate for membership in the European Union. Despite the fact that Turkey has contributed tremendously for the welfare of European countries, ironically its accession to the European Union remains at a standstill. Furthermore, France has always resisted Turkey’s membership in the European Union. (JUNG, D. et al 2008). The motive behind the resistance is not entirely based upon religious affairs. Moreover, the resistance has not stemmed due to a single reason, it is however, a cumulative result of numerous underlying issues. This Paper includes an overview on the ongoing enlargement process of the European Union and attempts to throw light at some of the major reasons forcing France to neglect strong Europe-Turkish ties and fiercely resist Turkey’s accession to the EU. The paper also attempts to weigh Turkey’s chances of accession to the European Union. Furthermore, the paper also attempts to speculate on whether France’s resi stance is justified. Overview: The long awaited accession negotiations finally opened on 3rd October, 2005. Turkey embarked on a long difficult journey of negotiations and it might take a decade before a decision is finalized. (ARIKAN, H. 2006). The terms of accession and the future benefits that turkey could give to the European Union, if its membership is confirmed, are two issues which have created an unclear and perplexed scenario. (JUNG, D. et al 2008). In order to become a member country, Turkey has to make tremendous efforts to fulfill the Copenhagen Criteria. Firstly, Turkey has to stabilize its political conditions by creating stable institutions which would ultimately guarantee and follow a democratic system and fulfill all the norms of a full European democratic country. Secondly, Turkey must transform into an economically strong country by creating a sound functioning market economy. Moreover, the EU expects Turkey to adopt and strictly adhere to the â€Å"acquis commun autaire† i.e. a set of EU laws. Thirdly, Turkey must reform its foundation in an effort to fully adopt and implement the political, economical and monetary Laws of the European Union. (TOGAN et al 2005). Opponents of turkey consider the country to be too big and too poor to join the European Union, on the other hand, some opponents consider Turkey to religious to be allowed to become a part of the European Union. Proponents of Turkey consider such opponent claims to be nothing but dubious notions because they recognize Turkey as an economically strong nation. Furthermore, they recognize the fact that Turkey is not bounded by a single religion as the Nation has no official religion thus, the issue of religion should not be treated as a major stumbling block to Turkey’s dream of accession to the European Union. (ENGERT, S. (2010). Turkey’s accession to the EU-A long, troubled journey: Since 200 years, Turkey has been trying to