Description
This paper points to the ambiguities of the relationship around five themes: identity, integration, economy, society, and strategy, which we believe are both the main forces behind and affected by Turkey’s hundred years old Europeanization process. We contribute to a more nuanced understanding of EU-Turkish relations in understanding them as an ongoing struggle between competing and coexisting forces, and navigating a complex terrain of identities and interests pulling in multiple directions. We emphasize the constant struggle over the future direction of the relations between whatever is defined as “Europe” and “Türkiye” as well as the reversibility of current trends. We see Türkiye and Europe entangled too deeply as to completely break apart, and being too diverse as to be wedded to a clearly delineated joint future. Our paper proceeds in five steps. First, we discuss the ambiguities of Turkey`s European identity and the perceptions of Turkey within EU member states. Secondly, we trace the ambiguous history of the political integration process before discussing mutual dependencies and divergences in trade and other economic aspects of the relationship. The final two sections deal with the ambiguous effects of Westernizations and Europeanization efforts in Turkish society and the tensions between the two sides in military matters. We argue that it is important to study the relationship between Türkiye and Europe across such a range of policy fields rather than focusing on only one of them to avoid biases resulting from idiosyncrasies of the respective field. Our conclusion reiterates that there is no unavoidable teleology in the Europe-Türkiye linkages. They are the product of constant struggles of a range of interested actors who push them in different directions. While at various historical junctures, circumstances benefitted different sides in these struggles, the result is a complex web of entanglements and ruptures that defies reductionist characterizations as “pro-“ or “anti-European”.
