Turkey as a Candidate Country on the way to Join the European Union
Author
Safarova, Klara
Term
4. term
Education
Publication year
2010
Submitted on
2010-06-30
Pages
59
Abstract
This thesis examines Turkey’s candidacy for European Union membership and its progress in accession negotiations, focusing on the political Copenhagen criteria—democracy, human rights, the rule of law, and minority protection. It applies Inglehart’s unified modernization theory to explore links between economic development and social, cultural, and political change, traces economic developments since the founding of the Republic, and analyzes European Commission Annual Progress Reports. Secondary sources are complemented by two semi-structured interviews with Enlargement Commissioner Štefan Füle and MEP Bernd Posselt. The study identifies obstacles including incomplete reform implementation, persistent human rights and Kurdish issues, the military’s role in politics, freedom of expression and minority protections, political resistance within the EU, and geopolitical sensitivities such as Cyprus. Findings suggest Turkey has embarked on a path toward EU-aligned democratic standards, yet a significant distance remains to fully internalize human rights and democracy; the gradual liberalization of political culture is constrained by enduring cultural legacies.
Denne afhandling undersøger Tyrkiets status som kandidatland og dets fremskridt i EU-tiltrædelsesprocessen med fokus på de politiske Københavnerkriterier—demokrati, menneskerettigheder, retsstat og mindretalsbeskyttelse. Den anvender Ingleharts samlede moderniseringsteori til at belyse sammenhænge mellem økonomisk udvikling og sociale, kulturelle og politiske forandringer, gennemgår landets økonomiske udvikling siden republikkens grundlæggelse og analyserer Europa-Kommissionens årlige fremskridtsrapporter. Sekundære kilder suppleres med to semistrukturerede interviews med kommissæren for udvidelse Štefan Füle og MEP Bernd Posselt. Undersøgelsen identificerer hindringer som ufuldstændig implementering af reformer, vedvarende menneskerettigheds- og kurdiske spørgsmål, militærets rolle i politik, ytringsfrihed og mindretalsbeskyttelse, politisk modstand i EU og geopolitiske forhold, herunder Cypern. Fundene peger på, at Tyrkiet har påbegyndt en vej mod EU-tilpassede demokratiske standarder, men at der fortsat er langt til fuld forankring af menneskerettigheder og demokrati; den gradvise liberalisering af den politiske kultur hæmmes af sejlivede kulturelle arvetræk.
[This apstract has been generated with the help of AI directly from the project full text]
Keywords