The Daily Star
Thursday, September 29, 2005
Crushing Turkey’s hopes for EU entry is a death sentence for its reform
drive
Editorial
Although the European Parliament’s resolution to add new conditions to
Turkey’s accession to the European Union will not affect the start of
negotiations toward this end, the move was yet another example of Europe’s
deep reluctance to welcome Turkey into the union. It has been over 40 years
since Turkey first applied to be a member of what was then the ECC, and
during the course of a long and tedious journey toward membership, Turkey
has patiently waited for a sign that the desired outcome is within reach.
The Turkish government has now made it clear that its patience is running
out. Yesterday, the Foreign Ministry reiterated that Turkey will reject an
offer of “privileged partnership” and will only participate in negotiations
that are geared toward full membership. A failure on the part of the EU to
offer membership will likely disrupt the process of engagement that Europe
has maintained with Turkey in recent years.
We have already seen the benefits of Europe’s engagement with the Turkey. To
get this far in the process, Turkey has made great strides in implementing a
number of wide-ranging political reforms. The government has abolished state
security courts, reformed the penal code, scrapped the death penalty and
allowed Kurdish to be taught and spoken in schools. There is still much more
that needs to be done in terms of political reform, improving human rights,
protecting minorities, recognizing Cyprus and acknowledging the Armenian
genocide. But keeping the process of negotiations alive will ensure that
there is continued progress on these and other fronts.
Breaking away from this process prematurely, however, would be a recipe for
disaster. Without the goal of membership in view, there is little motivation
for Turkey to continue on its current path.
Turkey’s accession could take as long as 10 years and it stands to reason
that during the lengthy process of negotiation, there will be ample time for
Turkey to make even greater advancements toward a democratic state. The
start of membership talks should therefore be viewed as the beginning of a
prolonged dialogue in which Europe has an opportunity to promote democracy
in Turkey, and by extension, in the entire Middle East.
;article_id=18872&categ_id=17#

EU Parlaiment News:
press_page/027-670-271-9-39-903-20050921IPR00563-2 8-09-2005-2005–true/default_en.htm
European Parliament postpones vote on protocol to Ankara Agreement
The Parliament postponed voting on approval of the protocol extending
Turkey’s association agreement with the EU to the ten new member
states. MEPs feared that the Turkish declaration that the protocol
does not mean any form of recognition of Cyprus would form part of the
ratification process in the Turkish parliament and thus gain legal
force. Nevertheless, in a political resolution voted afterwards,
Parliament noted that accession negotiations with Turkey can start on
3 October as foreseen.

At the request of the EPP-ED group, Parliament voted 311 votes in
favour, 285 against and 63 abstentions to postpone the vote on
Parliament’s approval of the protocol extending Turkey’s customs union
with the EU to all its new members, including Cyprus. The vote to
postpone has no legal consequences in terms of the starting date for
accession negotiations. Stumbling blocks were the Turkish declaration
that the signing of the protocol to the Ankara Agreement does not mean
any form of recognition of Cyprus and the Turkish refusal to admit
vessels and airplanes from Cyprus. A majority of MEPs first wanted
guarantees from the Turkish authorities that the declaration was not
going to be part of the ratification in the Turkish parliament,
fearing that it would then have legal implications.

Nevertheless, in a political resolution adopted afterwards by 356
votes in favour, 181 against and 125 abstentions, Parliament noted the
Commission’s and Council’s view that access negotiations with Turkey
can start on 3 October. But by the end of 2006, the Commission must
assess if Turkey has fully implemented the protocol. If not, this
could lead to halting the accession negotiations. During the
negotiations, which are open-ended and will not automatically lead to
Turkish EU membership, Turkey should be kept under permanent scrutiny
and pressure to ensure that it maintains “the pace of the necessary
reforms”.

Parliament also said it considered Turkish recognition of “the
Armenian genocide … to be a prerequisite for accession”.

MEPs deplore that the Annan plan for a settlement of the Cyprus
question has been rejected by the Greek Cypriot community and hopes
that Turkey will maintain its constructive attitude in finding an
equitable solution. Meanwhile, the Council should keep its promise and
reach an agreement on the financial aid and trade package for northern
Cyprus.

On other issues, MEPs voiced their concern about the criminal
proceedings against Turkish author Orhan Pamuk, about article 305 of
the penal code which criminalises “acts against the fundamental
national interest”, about the restrictions on foreign funding for
associations, and about the “Law on Foundations” concerning religious
communities.

Parliament wants each negotiation session at ministerial level to be
preceded by an assessment of the fulfilment of the political criteria,
both in theory and in practice, “thus exerting permanent pressure on
the Turkish authorities to maintain the pace of the necessary
reforms”. Also, a full programme of clear targets, timeframe and
deadlines should be fixed for the fulfilment of the political
criteria. The Commission and the Council should report annually to the
European Parliament and the national parliaments on the progress made
by Turkey in this respect. MEPs reiterate that the accession
negotiations are an open-ended process and will not automatically lead
to Turkey joining the EU, even if the objective is Turkish EU
membership. Finally, Parliament underlines that the EU’s capacity to
absorb Turkey is an important consideration as well, and needs to be
monitored by the Commission during the negotiations.

Debate on opening of accession negotiations with Turkey

Speaking on behalf of the Council, Britain’s Minister for Europe,
Douglas ALEXANDER said the strategic case for opening negotiations
with Turkey was convincing, but it was necessary to be scrupulous in
ensuring all the requirements were met before Turkey could join.

Turkey had met the two conditions laid down by the Council in
December, and its declaration stating that it had not recognised the
government of Cyprus had no legal effect. The negotiations would be
the most rigorous yet, and Turkey would not accede imminently. The
Turkey which would join would be a different Turkey, and the EU might
also be different by then too. Progress so far had been encouraging,
and the conditions for opening talks had been met, he said.

Enlargement Commissioner Oli REHN agreed that the formal conditions
set out by the Council for opening negotiations had been met. He also
stressed that the talks would be the most rigorous yet undertaken.
There were good signs – such as the Turkish government’s recognition
that there was a Kurdish issue and that the conference on the Armenian
question would finally go ahead – but also bad signs – such as the
uneven implementation of freedom of expression rights. “Both Europeans
and Turks should work to build a relationship based on mutual trust, ”
he said, pointing out that the common goal would be accession but that
by their very nature the talks were open as to the result they would
achieve.

Roger KNAPMAN (IND/DEM,UK) said that he opposed political union with
Turkey as much as he opposed it with France, Germany or Italy. “But
what of the euro-fanatics whose ardour suddenly cools when they reach
the Bosphorus? It is not hypocrisy, but fear, fear that public support
for the whole EU project will collapse if Turkish membership were
seriously pursued.” For this reason, he said, he was happy to see the
EU plough ahead with negotiations, destroying itself in the process.

Andrew DUFF (ALDE, UK) said “It is extraordinary that those who have
profited so much from EU integration in terms of prosperity, security
and liberal democracy should not refuse to extend these prizes to
Turkey.” He said the EU’s absorption capacity was a real issue, with
the need for a settlement of the constitution ahead of Turkish or
Croatian entry. He also argued that the Cyprus issue and instability
in the Balkans could not be resolved if the EU refuses membership to
Turkey, and called for a stepping up of trade relations with northern
Cyprus.

Roger HELMER (NI, UK) said there were powerful reasons in favour and
against Turkey’s accession to the EU. The key condition, he said,
should be “democratic accountability”, Mr Helmer felt that Turkey’s
accession would “dilute the influence” of his constituents in terms of
self-determination and he therefore opposed Turkish membership of the
EU. Mr Helmer welcomed the proposal from Angela Merkel on privileged
partnership for Turkey as it would incur fewer costs for Turkey. Mr
Helmer wished the option of privileged partnership could also be made
available to the United Kingdom.

Geoffrey Van ORDEN (EPP-ED, UK) stated that “last Christmas the
Council voted for Turkey”. The conditions laid out at that time had
been met and Turkey was therefore ready to start negotiations. Mr Van
Orden warned against the separatist dissidents still at large in
Turkey that risked undermining Turkish secularism and unity. He
stated that Turkey should be treated in the same way as all other
candidates for accession. Mr Van Orden stated that the Cyprus
question should be treated separately from the accession negotiations.
However, he recalled that the people of Northern Cyprus had voted in
favour of the Annan plan on reunification and that Greek Cyprus had
rejected. He said the EU had done little to support Northern Cyprus.
Mr Van Orden welcomed the imminent opening of negotiations and
recognised that the talks would last many years.

P U B L I C A F F A I R S O F F I C E NEWS RELEASE
EMBASSY OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
AMERICAN AVENUE 1
YEREVAN, ARMENIA
TELEPHONE (+374 10) 46 47 00; 46 47 01; 46 47 02
E-MAIL: [email protected]
September 28, 2005
The U.S. Embassy Announces Recruitment for the FLEX, UGRAD, and Muskie
Exchange Programs
On September 23 the U.S. Embassy held a press conference announcing the
beginning of the recruitment season for the following educational exchange
programs for the 2005-2006 academic year: the Future Leaders’ Exchange
Program (FLEX), the Eurasian Undergraduate Exchange Program (UGRAD), and the
Edmund S. Muskie Graduate Fellowship Program (Muskie).
The FLEX program is funded by the U.S. Department of State and is
administered by the American Councils for International Education. This
program provides scholarships for Armenian high school students to study in
the United States. Each scholarship recipient lives with a U.S. host family
for one academic year. Fifty scholarships are awarded to Armenian students
every year, and to date, nearly 470 Armenian high school students have
participated in this program. Recruitment will be conducted September
through October, and a recruitment schedule can be accessed at
Established by the U.S. Congress in 1992 to encourage economic and
democratic growth in Eurasia, the UGRAD program is funded by the U.S.
Department of State and administered by the International Research &
Exchange Board (IREX). This program provides opportunities for first,
second, and third year undergraduate students from Armenia other countries
in Eurasia for non-degree study in the United States for one academic year.
All fellows attend classes full-time for one year and perform a minimum of
20 hours of volunteer service in their host community during their first
semester and complete a part-time internship during their second semester.
Applications for the UGRAD program can be obtained by contacting IREX
Yerevan’s office, or can be downloaded from or
Online applications will be available October 2005.
The Muskie program is a U.S. Department of State program that is
administered by IREX. This program provides opportunities for graduate
students and professionals from Armenia and other countries in Eurasia to
study in the United States. All fellows attend classes full-time for one to
two years and are required to create and implement a project related to
their professional interests and beneficial for the local community.
Applications for the Muskie program can be obtained by contacting IREX
Yerevan’s office, or can be downloaded from or
Online applications will be available October 2005.
Information on these programs can also be accessed at

Hürriyetim
28.09.2005
Lawyers won’t drop the Armenian conference: new court case opened
Following the closure of the controversial two day Armenian conference at
Istanbul’s Bilgi University, a group of lawyers from the Lawyers’ Union in
Istanbul has opened a court case against 17 individuals they claim went
against the earlier ruling of an Istanbul court that the conference could
not proceed. The conference, titled “Ottoman Armenians During the Collapse
of the Empire,” had been originally scheduled for May of this year, and was
postponed following outcry over what was perceived as its pro-Armenian
agenda.
The rescheduled conference was then blocked by a last minute court order
brought about by a group of lawyers from Istanbul’s Lawyers’ Union. The
conference, forbidden from taking place at Bosphorus University, was then
transferred to Istanbul’s Bilgi University. The same group of lawyers from
the Lawyers’ Union filed for their case at Beyoglu’s Turkish Republic
Prosecutor’s offices yesterday. Among the 17 people listed in their file as
defying court orders are the rectors of Bosphorus, Sabanci, and Bilgi
universities, as well as Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Foreign
Minister Abdullah Gul.

The Times, UK
EU brinkmanship threatens Turkey talks
FROM ANTHONY BROWNE, BRUSSELS CORRESPONDENT
September 29, 2005
JACK STRAW, the Foreign Secretary, asked his European counterparts yesterday
not to `betray’ Turkey, as the Government faced last-minute defeat in its
struggle to get membership talks to start on Monday.
As the debate over the Muslim state’s entry reached fever pitch, the
European Parliament dealt a blow by first voting not to ratify a customs
union with Turkey, and then insisting that the Turkish Government
acknowledge that it committed genocide against its Armenian Christian
minority in the last century.
At a meeting of EU ambassadors today, Austria is expected to block the
opening of talks by insisting that Turkey be offered a `privileged
partnership’ instead of full membership. Ankara raised the stakes by
threatening to walk away if the conditions were changed.
Britain, which has made securing the start of Turkey’s entry talks the top
priority of its EU presidency, will then call an emergency meeting of EU
foreign ministers on Sunday to try to stop the membership negotiations
collapsing hours before they are due to start.
The brinkmanship on an issue critical to the future of Europe will leave
Abdullah Gul, the Turkish Foreign Minister, waiting in Ankara, not knowing
whether or not he should fly to Luxembourg to start entry talks. Turkey
first applied for membership of the European Economic Community 40 years
ago, and its current Government has undertaken a frenetic round of reforms
to meet EU membership criteria.
An EU diplomat said: `We could end up with Gul sitting at Ankara airport
waiting for word on the final language of the negotiating mandate. That
would be very humiliating for the Turks and get the talks off to the worst
possible start.’
The British Government believes that securing a large, democratic Muslim
nation in the EU is essential to avert a clash between Islam and the West.
Although European governments agreed in December to entry talks, doubts have
swelled since Dutch and French voters threw the EU into crisis by rejecting
a European constitution. In most EU countries, most voters are opposed,
often fearing an influx of immigrants. Many EU leaders, including President
Chirac of France, have expressed doubts about Turkey, and Angela Merkel, the
likely next Chancellor of Germany, is staunchly opposed.
Mr Straw told the Labour Party conference: `It would now be a huge betrayal
of the hopes and expectations of the Turkish people and of Prime Minister
(Recep Tayyip) Erdogan’s reform programme if, at this crucial time, we
turned our back on Turkey.’
Turkey has already been angered by other conditions that have been attached
at the last minute. One is that it recognise Cyprus, an EU member where it
has 35,000 troops occupying the north. Another is that it does not veto any
other EU country’s membership of international organisations. This is a
direct challenge to Turkey to stop using its veto at Nato to block Cyprus’s
membership. In Ankara, the Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesman said: `It is
out of the question for us to accept any formula or proposal other than full
membership.’
For and against
Last December, all 25 EU members agreed to open talks with Turkey in
October. Since then, concerns have arisen in several countries. They must
now unanimously agree a framework for negotiations.
Position of key countries:
Germany: Angela Merkel, the probable next Chancellor, fears that it will
make the EU unmanageable and lead to an influx of immigrants.
Cyprus: insists that Turkey recognise it, and stop banning Cypriot traffic
from Turkish ports and airports.
Austria: insists on `privileged partnership’, not full membership.
France: to placate public opposition to membership, it has promised a
referendum before it votes for Turkish entry.
Britain, Italy: strong support, believing that membership would avert clash
between Islam and the West.
,,13509-1802343,00.html

EU talks on Turkey threatened by disputes
By Dan Bilefsky
International Herald Tribune
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 29, 2005
ISTANBUL Just days before European leaders gather to decide whether to begin
talks with Turkey about its entering the European Union, Austrian resistance
to Turkey and unresolved disputes over Armenia and Cyprus risk derailing
negotiations.
As representatives from EU governments prepared to meet in Brussels on
Thursday to decide on a framework for negotiations with Turkey, people close
to the talks said that Austria remained determined to push for a “privileged
partnership” with Turkey that falls short of full membership. They said this
opposition could result in an emergency meeting of foreign ministers on
Sunday to try to salvage negotiations.
“Of course, we are hoping that talks will begin Monday as scheduled, but
right now tempers are high, Austria refuses to budge and the outcome is not
at all a done deal,” said a British official close to the talks. Under EU
rules, a decision to start talks must be unanimous.
The European Parliament gave grudging approval to the opening of talks
Monday, but it also said that Turkey must recognize the killing of Armenians
under Ottoman rule in 1915 as genocide or risk being left out of the EU. The
nonbinding resolution is largely symbolic, but it was met with a frosty
response in Ankara, which insists there was no genocide and is adamant that
no further conditions be attached to Turkey’s EU bid.
The European Parliament, meeting in Strasbourg, also postponed a vote that
was to have taken place Wednesday, to approve Turkey’s extended customs
union with the EU. Ankara has agreed to extend its free trade agreement with
the EU to all 25 member states, including Cyprus. But it refuses to
recognize Cyprus formally and denies Cyprus access to its airfields and
ports. In a heated debate, members of Parliament said this was unacceptable.
“Turkey has to recognize members of a club if it wants to join it,” said Jan
Marinus Wiersma, vice president of the Parliament’s influential Socialist
group.
The Turkish Cypriot leader, Mehmet Ali Talat, warned Wednesday that forcing
Turkey to recognize Cyprus before the island’s division was resolved could
destroy prospects for peace and lead to civil war. Cyprus has been divided
since 1974 into a Greek-Cypriot controlled south and a Turkish-occupied
north.
In Ankara, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey publicly dismissed
the European Parliament’s statements. But people close to the prime minister
said he had been stung by them and had momentarily considered boycotting the
talks. Erdogan has reiterated forcefully over the past few weeks that he
would walk away from the talks if Turkey were offered anything less than
full membership.
Turkish analysts said Turkish public opinion was growing increasingly
frustrated with the EU’s stance and Erdogan could not afford a deal deemed
humiliating by many Turks. “Erdogan will not agree to talks if Turkey is
forced to make more sacrifices,” said Selcuk Gutalesi, a commentator for
Zaman, a conservative newspaper close to the government. Already, Turkey has
accepted unprecedented conditions to open EU negotiations, including an
open-ended halt to the movement of Turkish workers into the bloc.
While the EU’s invitation to Turkey last December was greeted with euphoria
in Turkey, the anti-Turkey sentiment expressed in recent votes on the EU
constitution in France and the Netherlands has prompted some Turkish
newspapers to splash headlines on their front pages accusing the EU of
double standards and calling on it to obey its own high moral laws. Turkish
officials say they fear the EU will try Monday to impose even tougher
conditions on Turkey’s EU entry to placate its own skeptical citizens.
The idea of accepting a poor, agrarian country into the bloc has been met
with deep resistance across the EU. Recent polls show a majority of French,
German and Austrian voters oppose admitting Turkey, and a majority of Danes
would rather see non-EU candidate, Ukraine, in the EU than an “Islamic
country” like Turkey.
That skepticism is likely to intensify in coming years, because leaders
viscerally opposed to Turkey’s entry are on the rise in two of the EU’s most
important countries, Germany and France. The Christian Democrat leader,
Angela Merkel, who may lead a German coalition government after finishing
ahead of the party in power in this month’s elections, favors a “privileged
partnership” for Turkey. In France, a likely presidential candidate, Nicolas
Sarkozy, also opposes Turkish membership.
Sinan Ulgen, a political analyst at Istanbul Economics, an Istanbul research
institution and consultancy, said Turkey was bracing itself for a long road
ahead. “The talks are likely to last at least 10 years, so this is only the
beginning.”

Glendale News Press
28 Sept 2005
Crossing stays open, mayor says
Council members express ire at newspaper article alleging racial motivation
for proposed closure.
By Fred Ortega, News-Press and Leader
GLENDALE CITY HALL — Mayor Rafi Manoukian joined a majority of council
members Tuesday night in opposing a proposed closure of Chevy Chase Drive at
the Metrolink tracks, and he chastised a local Latino newspaper for alleging
that the planned road closure was racially motivated.
Noting that two other council members have expressed opposition to a plan to
use cul-de-sacs on Chevy Chase near the site of last January’s deadly
Metrolink accident to close off the crossing, Manoukian told the audience at
Tuesday night’s council meeting that the proposal is practically dead in the
water.
“I don’t see this happening,” Manoukian said. “[Councilmen Frank Quintero
and Dave Weaver] are on record saying they are against it, and I am saying
today that I will not support it.”
Manoukian then mentioned an article that appeared Sunday in the Los Angeles
Spanish language newspaper La Opinion.
Headlined “Glendale attempts to isolate Latinos,” the article painted the
controversy in stark racial tones, quoting Atwater Village residents who
claimed the proposed closure was an effort by Glendale officials to keep
their Latino residents out of Glendale.
It also alleged strained relations between Glendale’s Armenian and Los
Angeles’ Latino populations.
“To my great sadness I saw the article in La Opinion which described the
situation as a conflict between two ethnic groups,” Manoukian said. “We just
went to Washington to lobby for money for an emergency communications system
for the whole region, not just for Glendale.”
The allegations in the La Opinion article also shocked Councilman Bob
Yousefian.
“I have no idea where La Opinion got its information, but they need to
apologize and write a retraction,” Yousefian said. “Their accusations are
beyond belief. I was at the site of the [Metrolink] carnage, and our rescue
people who pulled the victims out of the wreckage were not looking to see
whether they were black, brown, red or any other color.”
At a meeting last week that drew 500 angry Atwater Village residents,
railing against the proposed closure, there was no mention of race.
Meeting organizer Lenore Solis, a Glendale Water and Power commissioner,
said she went to great lengths to keep people focused on the safety and
access issues raised by the plan.
“I told people that this is not what it is about, to not make it about
Armenians against Latinos,” she said. “This is a safety issue and a traffic
situation, and nothing else. Both the writer at La Opinion and a reporter
for Telemundo who interviewed me tried to make it a racial thing.”

Turkey rejects EU pressure on killings
Aljazeera.Net
Thursday 29 September 2005, 0:17 Makka Time, 21:17 GMT
Armenians every year mark mass killings by Ottoman Turks
Turkey’s prime minister has rejected a European Parliament resolution
calling on Ankara to recognise the mass killings of Armenians during the
first world war as genocide.
“That resolution is not binding. It does not matter whether they took such a
decision or not. We will continue on our way,” private CNN-Turk television
quoted Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan as saying during a visit to Abu
Dhabi.
Turkey is scheduled to open accession talks with the EU on Monday.
The EU lawmakers said in their resolution that recognition of the 1915-1923
killings as genocide should be a prerequisite for Turkey to join the
European Union.
Armenians across the world have been commemorating the anniversary of what
they brand as genocide on 24 April each year.
Ottoman Turks
Armenians say that 1.5 million Armenians were killed by
Ottoman Turks around the time of the second world war, which Armenians and
several nations around the world recognise as the first genocide of the 20th
century.
Turkey denies that the killings were genocide, saying the toll is inflated
and that Armenians were killed in civil unrest as the Ottoman Empire
collapsed.
Speaking to Turkish reporters in Abu Dhabi, Erdogan also reiterated his view
that the EU has to admit Turkey or risk being branded a “Christian club”.
“The EU … has to prove that it is not a Christian club. To say ‘the EU is
not a Christian club’ will not save it from becoming a Christian club,” he
said.
“What will the EU achieve by admitting Turkey? It will become a bridge
between the 1.5-billion strong Muslim world and the EU. It will start an
alliance of civilisations,” he added.

P U B L I C A F F A I R S O F F I C E – NEWS RELEASE
EMBASSY OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
AMERICAN AVENUE 1
YEREVAN, ARMENIA
TELEPHONE (+374 10) 46 47 00; 46 47 01; 46 47 02
E-MAIL: [email protected]
September 27, 2005
MOBILE INTERNET COMPUTER CENTER PRESS CONFERENCE & COMPETITION
On September 27, 2005 at 12:30 p.m. at Yerevan School #192 in Davitashen II
district, the U.S. Embassy will hold a press conference on the Yerevan tour
of the Mobile Internet Computer Center. The press conference will be led by
U.S. Embassy Chargé, Mr. Anthony Godfrey, together with the Public Affairs
Cultural Affairs Officer Ms. Tressa Finerty and the Country Director of
Project Harmony-Armenia Mr. David Simpson.
The U.S. Government funded Mobile Internet Computer Center, which serves
rural communities in Armenia, is currently making a tour in Yerevan to serve
secondary schools in the capital that are not currently connected to
Internet. From September 26 to October 1, the Mobile Internet Computer
Center will reside at Yerevan School # 192 to provide six days of free
computer training.
The Mobile Internet Computer Center is equipped with 5 workstations, a
printer, a scanner, a digital camera and satellite connection. It
successfully completed its first tour in Gegharkunik region, providing
Internet connectivity and computer trainings for about 20 remote schools
between Chambarak and Vardenis towns. More than 500 people were trained
during the tour.
An open competition among ten regions of Armenia (Yerevan is not eligible)
for the second tour of the Mobile Internet Computer Center is under way. A
committee made up of Project Harmony-Armenia and U.S. Embassy Armenia will
review applications and choose a winning region.
For more information about the U.S. Government funded Mobile Internet
Computer Center and the Armenian School Connectivity Program, please visit:

EU MPs add provisos to Turkey bid
BBC
Wednesday, 28 September 2005, 13:03 GMT 14:03 UK
The European Union parliament has backed plans to start talks on Turkish
accession, but insisted on a number of provisos before it is allowed entry.
MPs insisted Ankara recognise the killings of thousands of Armenians in 1915
as genocide. Turkey denies that the killings were systematic.
MPs also postponed a vote on ratifying Turkey’s customs arrangements because
of its refusal to recognise Cyprus.
Neither decision affects entry talks which are due to start on 3 October.
The negotiations, once started, are expected to take about 10 years.
The European Commission said the postponement of the vote was an “own goal”
by the parliament.
The Armenian killings have long been a taboo subject in Turkey. Armenians,
supported by 15 countries, including France, Switzerland, Russia and
Argentina, accuses the then Ottoman rulers of carrying out a “genocide”.
Turkey disputes the charge, saying that a few hundred thousand died and that
the deaths occurred in a civil war in which many Turks were also killed.
But Turkey’s Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan did condemn a Turkish court’s
decision to order the cancellation of a conference about the killings which
was due to have been held last week.
Vetoes await
Further talks about Turkey’s accession are set for Thursday to try to
resolve a deadlock over the question of the negotiating framework for
Turkish membership.
Turkey has been clear that it will not accept the option of privileged
partnership, which Austria is pushing to be inserted into the negotiating
framework; only full membership will do.
The BBC’s Jonny Dymond says that even if they get the framework they want,
the membership process will be a long and painful one.
This is partly because so much needs to be done by Turkey to adapt itself to
EU rules. It needs to absorb the 80,000 page long EU rule book into its
domestic law.
One member state has already boasted about the number of potential vetoes it
has during the negotiations process. There is also the question of Turkey’s
continuing human rights reform process.
Expectations
The European Commission has promised to monitor closely how Turkey proceeds.
If it is deemed to be slipping backwards in theory or practice, then the
commission will not hesitate to make its misgivings public.
To add to all the difficulties, there is the question of public expectations
in Turkey.
Our correspondent says many Turks see the membership process as a genuine
negotiation, a process of give and take. But by and large, Turkey has simply
to do what it is told if it wants to join the club – which for many is a
sharp change in culture, he adds.