Turkey's potential EU membership

After successfully growing from 6 to 25 members, the European Union is now preparing for the next enlargement; but for countries which, because of their history, of their geographical situation, economic or political, cannot easily adhere: such is the case of turkey. The accession of turkey, requested since 1987, was got rid by an evasive answer of the commission at the end of 1989. In the summit meeting of Luxembourg, in December 1997, the fifteen even meant in Ankara that they did not wish to see it becoming a member full with the "European club", a position defended by Germany and the whole of the democratic Christian governments, but what disputes London and Paris. However, in 1999, the European Commission decodes to grant to turkey the statute applicant country. If it is a success, could this same strategy be applied to the EU's relations with countries on the southern shore of the Mediterranean? Questions like these open up the whole debate about what it means to be European, what is the ultimate purpose of European integration and what are the EU's interests in the world at large. It is time to redefine and reinforce the EU's preferential agreements with its near neighbours, and to do so in the most wide-ranging terms possible. After a short presentation of turkey and conditions for European union membership, we will examine in what turkey formed part of the list of the countries retained for widening then we will discuss the handicaps from which turkey as a candidate suffers.