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Transcript/Script((PLAYBOOK SLUG: TURKEY EU
HEADLINE: EU’s Eastward Drive Threatens Further Delays on Turkey’s Bid to Join
TEASER: European leaders are focused on Ukraine, but analysts say Turkish objections over Sweden’s NATO membership give Erdogan leverage at EU
PUBLISHED AT: 12/13/2023 2pm
BYLINE: Dorian Jones
CONTRIBUTOR:
DATELINE: Istanbul
VIDEOGRAPHER: Berke Bas DO NOT USE NAME FOR SECURITY REASONS.
PRODUCER:
SCRIPT EDITORS: LR, MAS,
VIDEO SOURCE (S): Original, Reuters, Turkish Coast Guard, Eudebates.Tv, AK party.
PLATFORMS: WEB __ TV _x_ RADIO __
TRT: 3:02
VID APPROVED BY: MAS
TYPE: TV/R
UPDATE:DO NOT USE BERKE BAS NAME FOR SECURITY REASONS.))
((INTRO))
[[Turkey is looking for key concessions at the European Union Summit in its longtime bid to join the group. EU leaders are focused on Ukraine at this meeting, but as Dorian Jones reports from Istanbul, analysts say Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has some powerful leverage.]]
((NARRATOR))
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is looking to refresh Turkey’s decades-long bid to join the EU as European leaders gather at the EU summit in Brussels this week.
Analysts say visa liberalization and, most importantly, a new trade deal are at the top of Erdogan’s agenda.
[[RADIO VERSION: Berkay Mandiraci is a senior Turkey analyst for the International Crisis Group.]]
((Berkay Mandiraci, International Crisis Group (MALE IN ENGLISH)))
((Zoom))
“I think the priority is the customs union modernization, especially now that Turkey's economy is in bad shape. Even the launch of negotiations would build trust also among investors. I think it would increase Turkey's credibility also in international markets.”
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((NARRATOR))
Ahead of the summit, Josep Borrell, the EU's top diplomat, voiced support for Ankara's calls for a more open visa policy and a new customs union. But analysts warn
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obstacles remain as EU leaders focus on Ukraine's membership aspirations and broader eastward expansion.
[[RADIO VERSION: Sinan Ulgen is an analyst with the Centre for Economics & Foreign Policy Studies, an Istanbul think tank.]]
((Sinan Ulgen, Center for Economics & Foreign Policy Studies – MALE IN ENGLISH - VOA ORIGINAL))
((Zoom))
“There are two major hurdles. One is that now the political bandwidth in Europe is being spent on Ukraine, and the other one, of course, is the fact that most of the major capitals and, particularly Germany, have their own internal difficulties at this point in time.”
((NARRATOR))
Across Europe, far-right parties that oppose closer ties with Turkey are on the rise, and European parliamentary elections are due next year. Turkey's declining human rights record – the reason Turkey’s membership bid has been frozen for years - also remains an issue. Any new trade deal and change in visa policy for Turkish citizens would require concessions from Turkey on human rights.
((NARRATOR))
But Erdogan retains powerful leverage over European leaders. Ankara has yet to ratify Sweden's application for membership to NATO,
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and Turkey, under an EU deal, is the gatekeeper to migrants seeking to enter Europe.
[[RADIO VERSION: says political scientist Zeynep Alemdar of Istanbul’s Okan University:]]
((Zeynep Alemdar, Okan University ((female in English))
((Zoom))
“We need each other in terms of, whenever the Turkey-EU relations go south, Turkey comes up, some geographical or international security theme comes up and shows the European Union how much it actually needs Turkey given its geographical position, given its military might, and given where it stands in terms of its neighbors.
((NARRATOR))
With Erdogan newly empowered after his reelection in May, analysts predict European leaders will try to find a way to accommodate the Turkish leader’s shorter-term requests on trade and visas, while postponing questions about his long-term concerns like Turkey’s bid to join the EU.
((Dorian Jones, for VOA News, Istanbul))
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