MILLIYET- Columnist Sami Kohen comments on the upcoming elections and Turkey’s European Union membership bid. A summary of his column is as follows:
Around us you can see that everybody’s mind is spinning, from both Sunday’s elections and Turkey’s EU membership bid. With just two days before the elections, it’s unclear which party will come out the winner, who will become prime minister or whom the president will appoint to set up a new government. On such matters, everybody is making conjectures, guesses, and predictions. Some 40 days before the Copenhagen summit, it’s uncertain if the EU will give Turkey a date for its membership negotiations and also unclear what Ankara would then do if it gets a date.
Despite all this confusion, our impression on the EU issue is that the Copenhagen summit will do its best to make sure that Turkey doesn’t come home empty-handed. It’s unlikely that the EU will offer a firm date, but a conditional date might be in the offing. Let’s first clear up what is meant by ‘conditional,’ namely fulfilling conditions set out by the Copenhagen criteria, in other words, certain legal regulations concerning human rights and freedoms. So these aren’t ‘additional’ hurdles being put forward before Turkey. If some government officials hadn’t insisted that the EU give Turkey a date immediately, expectations that carry the danger of becoming disappointment wouldn’t have taken so much hold among the Turkish public. Obviously before there are new EU member countries in 2004, it’s important for us to get a date. However, not getting a date in December or next year wouldn’t be the end of the world. We hope and believe that during Greece’s EU term presidency in the first half of 2003, a definite date will be given and our negotiations process will begin.
After a decision setting out how the EU will proceed on our negotiations is made at Copenhagen, it’s very important that Turkey applies itself to do what’s necessary. We hope that before that time, the new post-election government will make this issue one of its top priorities.

SOURCE: OFFICE OF THE PRIME MINISTER, DIRECTORATE GENERAL OF PRESS AND INFORMATION