Source: wikitravel.org

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey, on September 18, 2009, declared that the new session of Parliament beginning on October 1st would address the issue of Kurdish civil and political liberties.¹  In the same spirit of change, Prime Minister Erdogan announced in July a package of reforms to boost the rights and freedoms of Kurdish Turks and address the poverty concentrated in the southeast.

A series of reforms have subsequently ensued. Artuklu University in Turkey agreed to allow the Kurdish language to be taught alongside other minority languages as part of a new studies program.²  Similarly, on September 20th, it was announced that the state theatre would allow the first-ever performance of a Kurdish language production. An earlier announcement in January confirmed a 24-hour Kurdish language television station.³

Turkey has begun a series of reforms in part to achieve full accession to the European Union, as well as achieve international legitimacy.

Unique Characteristics and Growing Importance

Turkey was once the center of the rich and flourishing Ottoman Empire. Its attractiveness is due, in part, to its tremendous history of myth and is compounded by its geographic and strategic location at the crossroads between Europe and Asia, where it controls the entrance to the Black Sea. Nationalist leader Kemal Ataturk founded the modern secular Republic of Turkey in 1923.

Turkey has been transformed into a modern state and is a party to almost every major international organization, including the Council of Europe and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). The next step toward complete multilateral cohesion is full accession to the European Union (EU), a prolonged and continuing process begun in 1999 when it achieved full candidate status.⁴ 

Turkey remains at the center of discussions of international relations and globalization because of its strategic geography, its Muslim majority combined with a deep-rooted democracy, and the embroiled debate over EU accession. Turkey has become increasingly pivotal for Middle Eastern diplomacy. This underscores the importance of addressing Turkey’s strained diplomatic relations with Armenia, Cyprus, and its own minority Kurd population.

A focus on Turkey in recent years references the country’s political and economic importance, which corresponds to the globalization movement and its clear economic and political ramifications. This news analysis will address Turkey’s geostrategic location, the question of its full accession to the EU, its current diplomatic tensions, and finally, its importance to the globalization movement.

Addressing the Geographic Importance of Turkey

Turkey shares its land borders with Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Georgia, Iran, Iraq, and Syria. Its array of diverse neighbors gives it a strategic significance that few world states possess. The inherent differences among its neighbors from political structure, religion, and overall culture, are striking. Thanks to its characterization as a modern, Muslim state, Turkey is considered a bridge between Western and Islamic civilizations.

Its border states are classified according to political system and religious majority as the following:⁵

Armenia	Azerbaijan	Bulgaria	Georgia	Iran	Iraq	Syria
Presidential Republic	Presidential Republic	Presidential Republic	Republic	Theocratic Republic	Parliamentary Democracy	Arab-Republic under military-dominated regime
Christian	Muslim	Christian	Christian	Muslim	Muslim	Muslim

It is important to note the diversity in the region. The region includes Azerbaijan that is among the worst rated countries for civil and political liberties, according to the watchdog organization Freedom House.⁶  Also in the neighborhood is Iraq, whose instability continues to wreak havoc even after Operation Iraqi Liberation has ceased under the Obama administration. Syria also stands out as its active tensions with Israel remain a benchmark of its foreign policy and international reputation.

The position of Turkey in the midst of it all is attractive for westerners, notably the EU and the United States, who seek to build better relations with the Middle Eastern, Slavic Orthodox, and Persian civilizations. Globalization is a large part of this integration. For the free movement of goods, services, capital, and persons, it is necessary to first procure better relations. Turkey has been willing to engage the West and embrace globalization. This has been central to a regional movement toward economic integration. Turkey’s process of globalization ultimately began in the early 1980s with an adoption of the popular paradigms of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).⁷ 

Questions of EU Membership

The struggle to assume Turkey as a full member of the EU has been widely debated and well documented. Turkey’s motivation to be included in the union has motivated substantial changes in its economy and civil and political rights.

The EU’s European Commission for Enlargement laid out specific criteria for consideration to become a full member of the union, including reforms that addressed democracy, the rule of law, human rights, social rights and economic rights. Economic criteria include the free movement of goods, capital, public procurement, competition, media, and information services

Since 2000, Turkey has amended a third of its Constitution, by enacting human rights laws, abolishing the death penalty, providing greater protections for women, and by introducing safeguards against torture under a reformed penal system.⁸ Arguably, Turkey’s inclusion in the EU would allow the nation to be more comfortable with its diversity and shine as a testament to the compatibility between democracy and Islam, something that many in the EU and US hope will come to pass.⁹ 

The issue of Turkish accession to the EU has been going on for 10 years and the EU does not seem ready to accept a Muslim-majority nation into its union. Some scholars see Turkish membership as a direct attack on the existential meaning of the EU, a union that is not geographic, but rather, political. Contrastingly, Turkey’s membership could galvanize the level of integration in the EU and expand its influence in the trading world, as well as the expansion of the benefits of greater globalization eastward.

Easing Diplomatic Tensions on the Road towards Greater International Legitimacy

Kurdish Population

The minority Kurdish population in Turkey has continuously struggled with restrictions on the use of their language among other violations of civil liberties. These rights violations have led to the creation of the radical Kurdish Workers Party, whose tactics are deemed actions of terrorism.

However, recent reforms in Turkey have attempted to end years of conflict with the Kurdish rebels. In January 2009, Turkey’s public broadcaster launched a 24-hour Kurdish language television channel, the first in the country’s history.¹⁰  Similarly, the State Theatre is set to be home to the first-ever production of a Kurdish-language play. Also in 2009, Artuklu University will begin a program of Kurdish studies alongside other minority languages, such as Farsi, Arabic, and Syriac.¹¹ 

Prime Minister Erdogan

Approximately 20 percent of Turkey is of Kurdish descent. As a result, the Turkish Prime Minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, has vowed that the country must deal with the Kurdish rebels concentrated in the southeast region of the nation. According to BBC estimates, 40,000 people have been killed during the 25-year conflict.¹²  External pressure from the EU has prompted the Turks to address this issue and make concessions to the Kurds.

The Cyprus and Armenia Problem

The EU has demanded that Turkey open its ports and airports to Cyprus, an EU member since 2004.¹³  Turkey has no diplomatic relations with Cyprus. The island of Cyprus is divided between the Turkish Cypriots in the north and the Greek Cypriots in the south. The north declared itself independent as the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, a state only recognized by Turkey. The Turkey-Cyprus conflict is deep-rooted with continued tensions over Turkish occupation of lands and Turkish support of the north. Turkey still retains troops in the north of the island. Ultimately, the strains between the Greek Cypriots and the Turkish Cypriots are a danger to Turkey’s accession to the EU.

In the same realm, Turkey’s lack of relations with neighboring Armenia has roots in the Armenian genocide over 90 years ago and surrounding politics of the ensuing movements of refugees. The nationalists in Armenia believe that there should be no contact between the Armenians and Turks until Turkey officially recognizes the genocide, pays reparations, and returns territory assumed during that period.¹⁴  However, recently, the Turks and Armenians have officially laid forth a plan to establish diplomatic relations through two protocols issued as a joint statement between both states.¹⁵ 

On the road toward reconciliation with both Cyprus and Armenia, Turkey is attempting to showcase itself as a regional peacemaker and, hence, a good fit for the EU and worthy of the classification of bridge between the West and East. Additionally, it will serve as another notch in the belt for Turkey’s international and regional clout.

Globalization Intersection

The Swiss economic research institute KOF issued a 2008 report examining 158 countries under categories including economic, social, and political globalization. The study placed Turkey in the 57th position. This study highlights Turkey’s relative success toward engaging itself in the globalized world and taking advantage of opportunities for economic integration.¹⁶ 

Undoubtedly, Turkey’s unique collection of characteristics and attributes are endemic to its success as an important regional and international power. Its importance to the globalization movement is dependent upon its geography, its future place in the EU order, and the resolution of its long-standing diplomatic strife with neighboring states.

For further reading:

The strategic importance of Turkey in the post-9/11 world, an article from the Middle East Technical University:
http://www.eusec.org/bagci.htm

The EU next progress report on Turkey will be available in October 2009.

The full 2005 report and other important documents pertinent to Turkey’s candidacy are available at:
http://ec.europa.eu/enlargement/candidate-countries/turkey/key_documents_en.htm

See the International Crisis Group for in-depth discussion of the Turkey-Cyprus-EU conflict:
http://www.crisisgroup.org/home/index.cfm?id=5908&l=1