BY MURAT YETKIN
RADIKAL- A very positive atmosphere has dominated EU Commissioner for Enlargement Guenther Verheugen’s recent visit to Turkey. His optimistic statements on Turkey’s EU membership bid have been shocking to many since he is well-known for negative statements on Turkey’s status as a candidate country. While Verheugen was visiting Diyarbakir where he implied that the EU is ready to provide the villagers of southeastern Anatolia with financial assistance if Ankara manages to make more progress on its path towards the EU membership, meanwhile the Dutch Justice Ministry agreed to extradite Nuriye Kesbir to Turkey, a member of the terrorist organization PKK, after obtaining the guarantee from the Turkish authorities that Kesbir will get a fair trial according to the relevant international treaties.
There are two main motives behind this positive atmosphere. First, Turkey has really managed to make significant progress in fulfilling the Copenhagen criteria. The Justice and Development Party (AKP) government has particularly taken great steps in improving minority rights to which the EU attaches the highest importance.
Second, Europe has also changed its stance on Turkey. The EU member countries have really been impressed by Ankara’s successes. The Independent Commission on Turkey recently issued a report applauding Ankara’s efforts on democratization and expressing optimism on Turkey’s possible EU membership. The report considers Turkey’s young population, the sensitive geography it is located on and the strong Turkish army, all of which as a matter of fact was seen as obstacles in the past, Turkey’s trump cards on its path toward the full membership. In addition, the report also praises the secular Turkish state and Ataturk’s reforms. This is a pleasing development for our country.