Turkey: to negotiate, or not?

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<http://www.cafebabel.com/en/dossier.asp?id=126>  Dossier
<http://www.cafebabel.com/en/dossier.asp?id=126>Turkey: to negotiate, or not?
On October 6th, the Commission will most probably give the green light for
the opening of negotiations with Turkey over its entry into the EU. This
should be followed by a formal decision by EU Heads of State in December.
Are they making the right choice?

 <http://www.cafebabel.com/en/article.asp?T=T&Id=2443> Against Membership
by Force
Turkey is a very different kind of candidate, as the current debate goes to
show. If the issue is not one of systematic objection, one should not
overlook European public opinion
                 Valery-Xavier Lentz - Paris

 <http://www.cafebabel.com/en/article.asp?T=T&Id=2447> Negotiations should
begin
Saglamer Tuncer, a young European of Turkish extraction, argues the case
for Turkey. Distinguishing between beginning negotiations and actual
membership, he points out the mutual benefits of this prospective
enlargement
                 Saglamer Tuncer - Strasbourg

 <http://www.cafebabel.com/en/article.asp?T=T&Id=2442> Europe in the middle
of the Turkish dilemma
The controversial marriage between Ankara and Brussels continues to divide
diplomacies and EU institutions
                 Sergio Nava - Milano

 <http://www.cafebabel.com/en/article.asp?T=A&Id=928> Is the EU an
exclusive Christian club?
The European Union, though secular, is essentially an association of
Christian countries. Would the addition of Turkey and its large Muslim
population will better reflect the changing demography of the EU?
                 Chris Yeomans - Leeds

 <http://www.cafebabel.com/en/article.asp?T=T&Id=2445> Economics versus
identity
There’s no doubt about it. Turkish membership would reopen the debate on
European identity. But the geopolitical capital offered by Ankara is
immense. Is it worth it?
                 Tommaso Merlo - Milano

 <http://www.cafebabel.com/en/article.asp?T=T&Id=2452> Turkish markets are
ready for Europe
Turkey’s economic situation is no longer a barrier to accession: in spite
of the poor Anatolian East, Turkey is economically better off than some of
the other EU accession states.
                 Sven Prange - Düsseldorf

 <http://www.cafebabel.com/en/article.asp?T=T&Id=2448> The long road to
human rights
The reform of the penal system signals another great advance for human
rights in Turkey. But there is still much to be done before the
transformation registers in conservative minds and in the furthest reaches
of the country
                 Ulrich Schwerin - Berlin



And every week, <http://www.cafebabel.com/en/macro.asp?Id=6>Caffeine, Short
but sweet, the best of café babel. This week
:<http://www.cafebabel.com/en/article.asp?T=A&Id=920> European humanism
taken hostage

And don't miss <http://www.cafebabel.com/en/macro.asp?Id=8>  the section
which takes you to a journey to the East of Europe! This week :
<http://www.cafebabel.com/en/article.asp?T=T&Id=2419>How Muslim is Turkey?




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