How long is the delay?

A population of 80 million, 12 of which are in the 15-25 age bracket, a mean age of 29 and a 11.6% GDP growth in times of global crisis, to the extent that some European industrialists have described it as a “near China”. Increasing numbers of women are employed in key sectors: 32% in the financial sector, 34% in the medical sector and 39% in the academic realm. These figures are enough to realize that Turkey is increasingly becoming a key player in the Mediterranean, and not only. It is the opinion of Janiki Cingoli, chairman of the Italian Centre for Peace in the Middle East (CIPMO), who organized a series of meetings titled “Phenomenon Turkey”. “In these years, Cingoli expained, we have witnessed the tectonic emergence of a new power at regional level which is not fully understood by Italian entrepreneurs nor by society as a whole”. Growth and reforms. The first meeting took place October 10 at Palazzo Turati, the seat of the Chamber of Commerce in Milan. The dynamism of the country was underlined by the Turkish ambassador in Italy, Hakki Akil: “From 2002 to 2009 Turkey’s GDP increased threefold. We are the thirteenth world economy and G20 members. An economic growth to which corresponded a series of political reforms and of civil society developments. In fact, over the past months Turkey’s NGOs collected 300 million dollars for the famine in Somalia”. When speaking about Turkey we mustn’t forget the military putsch in 1980 followed by the Constitution drawn up in 1982. That heritage still lingers on. “The present Constitution – pointed out the chairman of the Policy Center in Istanbul, Emin Fuat Keyman – is the one that resulted from the coup d’etat. A constitutional reform must be urgently carried out”. According to Fuat Keyman, many challenges await Premier Erdogan, who gained a clear victory in the elections of June 12, marked by the participation of 87% of all voters. “The main challenge for the government – Keyman pointed out – remains the Kurdish question which has gained renewed relevance”. Alongside there are a series of other hanging questions, such as the country’s role in the Arab Spring, democratization and human rights. “With the recent diplomatic tour in the Mediterranean countries – Keyman underlined – Erdogan became increasingly popular, but there are also tensions with Syria, Egypt, Tunisia and Israel; this entails more challenges and new responsibilities for Turkey”. Blocked negotiations. On the international front the greatest question mark regards the relations with the European Union. Turkey’s first steps towards the EU date back to 1959. Twenty years ago the adhesion request became official and in 2002 the Country was granted EU candidate status, followed by the opening of negotiations chapters in 2005. Those negotiations have now reached a deadlock. “Let us hope to witness Turkey’s full participation in European Union Institutions” since “EU politics in the region are weaker without this Mediterranean region”, said Matteo Fornara, director of the European Commission bureau in Milan. “The Turkish dossier on EU adhesion has been marked by accelerations and slowdowns. We regret to see that on the part of the EU there are resistances at a stage when – Fornara added – the recent events in the Mediterranean make Turkey’s role increasingly important”. But in recent years the attitude of Turkish leadership towards the EU has changed: “If in the past decades Europe was seen by Turkey as a natural destination now Turkey seems no longer dependant on the EU and it is diversifying its international strategies. For this I believe that the EU must continue working for a privileged relationship with Turkey”. The vice-president of the Senate Emma Bonino, has instead invited Turkey, in an ever-more global context, “to shun the belief that it can make it on its own”, calling for the recovery of the negotiations. EU as the sole objective. Volkan Bozkir, ambassador and president of the Foreign Affairs Commission of the Turkish parliament also addressed the theme of EU-Turkey relations. “Europe remains Turkey’s objective – Bozkir said – but we can’t wait forever. We are committed in fulfilling all 18 EU adhesion chapters by the end of 2013. For this we expect an answer by the beginning of 2014″. I think and I hope – the ambassador continued – that this standstill situation will not lead the EU to risk losing a member like Turkey, whose population continues wanting to be part of Europe”. With reference to the recent diplomatic initiatives Turchem Bozkir concluded: “Having good relations with our neighbours doesn’t mean looking for alternatives” since “the Turkish axis remains the same”.