Turkey – the European gamechanger

What do you think of when you someone asks you about the country of Turkey? For most Europeans, the country is defined by the blue Mediterranean, summer holidays in Bodrum and one of the world’s leading cuisines. My first opinions of the country were shaped by a Channel 4 TV series back in the late 1990s by the archaeologist John Romer, who marvelled at the ancient civilization of Byzantium through the modern metropolis of Istanbul. It took me ten years to visit the city but it was definitely worth the wait – anyone who has gazed upon the Hagia Sophia and the Blue Mosque, two of the world’s most distinctive and well-known religious buildings can attest to the enduring marvels of the East.

In recent weeks, the media has shifted considerable focus on Turkey. David Cameron’s visit to the country this week (see below) highlights its strategically important role for Britain politically, economically and as part of the NATO alliance. This week’s Newsweek argues that the country is forging a ‘unique, centrist role in a divided world’. For some time, there has been a perceptible Turkish rapprochement with its neighbours in the Arab world. Turkey has also forged strong business links in the Caucasus and with fellow-Turkic language speakers in Kazakhstan and Central Asia. Yet, for fifty or so years Turkish foreign policy has consistently oriented itself towards union with Europe.

Its politicians and economists have done the sums – it’s much more advantageous to be part of the world’s largest economic bloc than left on the sidelines particularly when the country’s main export markets are Germany, France, the UK and Italy. Strong links to much of Europe are solidified by a large and vibrant Turkish-minority in Germany, which has shaped the cultural and economic life of many of the country’s major cities.

Turkish accession to the EU would bring a number of key benefits for the trading bloc and for the inner dynamics of the Union. Most interesting of all, Turkish accession to the EU will effectively decide the future of the world’s most powerful trading bloc. With Turkish accession, the EU would look very different to how its original founders envisaged.

Whether Turkey joins the EU within the next 10 or 20 years, it is evident that the country has an enormous amount of positive things going for it including a favourable geographical location between East and West, a young and mobile workforce and a growing and diverse economy. Whilst images of Bodrum beaches may remain for some, Turkey is redefining Europe’s future. It may also come to define the futures of its near neighbours in the East at the same time.