Four Years In

BY YILMAZ OZTUNA
TURKIYE- For months, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's top priority has been the local elections set for next March. Though he is the premier, his efforts to promote his party in the elections are quite normal. Moreover, he believes that if it falls short in the elections, Turkey's stability will suffer.

In addition, main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) leader Deniz Baykal is also focused on the elections. He doesn't want to make fewer election promises than Erdogan. Another opposition leader, Devlet Bahceli, seems to feel that the last person to speak will win the debate.

Of course the local elections are important, but their real importance is as a sign of the public's mood ahead of the next general elections. They are even a factor in deciding if general elections are held sooner or later.

Erdogan is normally engaged in all of the country's issues. He makes great efforts, including in foreign policy. But he recently gave himself a bit of an image of being angry with the European Union. He seemed to have left the matter drift. He's waiting for Europe to see that Turkey is indispensable.

Our EU membership would be a guarantee of both Europe's borders and our own. It would end deceptive charges against Turkey.

So Erdogan's decision to travel on January 19 to Brussels, which he hasn't visited for four years, is a good one. We should repair our neglect of the EU over fruitless disputes. This is the best shortcut on the path to civilization. Other ways are very hazardous.