October 4, 2005
WHY BOTHER?:
Straw steers EU away from 'precipice' with Turkey accession deal (NICOLA SMITH, 10/04/05, The Scotsman)
THE British government last night averted a deep political crisis in the European Union after it thrashed out a delicate agreement to begin accession talks with Turkey.After over 24 hours of tense negotiations and with only a few hours' sleep, Jack Straw, the British Foreign Secretary, brokered a successful compromise to allay Austrian and Turkish concerns about the terms of the negotiations.
The deal was finally clinched after a fraught four-hour wait on Turkey to agree to the fine details of the negotiating mandate. [...]
The positive outcome to the intense session of diplomatic wrangling was a welcome relief for the British government which had billed the opening of talks with Turkey as one of the benchmarks of the success of its six-month EU presidency.
Since Britain and the Eastern European states are the only ones interested in Islamic democracies, why not just end run the EU? Posted by Orrin Judd at October 4, 2005 9:00 AM
How long are the Turks going to put up with these successive humiliations before they explode in a fundamentalist, anti-Western reaction?
Posted by: Peter B at October 4, 2005 9:08 AMI'll pop the corn--you bring the beer?
Posted by: oj at October 4, 2005 9:41 AMThe question is how long is Britain going to continue to play footsie with the EU instead of saying thanks, but no thanks? My fear is that the liberal drift of Britain will eventually lead it to be swallowed by the EU.
Posted by: AWW at October 4, 2005 10:01 AM
The U.K. Will do as it is told to do By The U.S.A., Because that, "right now is were the money is".
The Turks have anyways been pals with the germans in the 1st world war and the 2nd world war and will help in the coming third world war so what new?
the deal being made now has nothing to do with what you think its all about, its a power play for the EU, Guys who need control over the money system.
but the question should be who is who and why?
No, Fred, the money's in Frogistan.
Mama made her defensive choice 5 years ago under the radar of Parliament.
They chose the continent. The rest will follow.
Posted by: Sandy P at October 4, 2005 11:31 AMFrom the BBC: "Mr Straw warned of a 'theological-political divide, which could open up even further down the boundary between so-called Christian-heritage states and those of Islamic heritage'."
Remind me why we should care about Europe?
Posted by: b at October 4, 2005 11:44 AMFred: Your statement about Germany and Turkey in WWII is just wrong.
Turkey was neutral for most of the war, but unlike other neutrals, it really was neutral, shading towards helping the Allies. There was one big battle in Turkish territory that the Axis lost, most likely due to deliberately falsified geographic data from Turkey. Constantinople was a clearing house for saving Jews from the Nazis. Before the war, Attaturk had Turkey search out Jewish academics and professionals ousted from their jobs in Germany and invited them to Turkey. Turkish consuls in France and Italy zealously protected Turkish Jews from being sent to the camps and confirmed Turkish citizenship in many "questionable" instances.
Turkey declared war on Germany in February, 1945.
Posted by: David Cohen at October 4, 2005 7:35 PM