The emergence of anti-democracy protests on Europe's south-eastern periphery is a worrying trend, and suggests that once again all is not well in this historically conflicted region. Geographically, Turkey is close to many Middle Eastern countries which have seen uprisings and conflict in the last two years, therefore it is not surprising that any sign of a Government leader appearing to overstay his (or her) welcome is likely to cause concern for citizens in Turkey.
Another issue is that Turkey has long been known as a cradle of civilisation between East and West, with the Western half of the country traditionally looking more towards Europe, whilst the Eastern half is closer to Asia, both geographically and culturally. This presents a problem similar to that of Ukraine, whereby the country is geographically and politically divided between two different political structures, though to date this has not represented a significant problem for Turkey as there is no external power trying to imperalise or dictate to Turkey.
Turkey's problem is, rather, internal, and these latest protests will only have the effect of stalling potential membership for Turkey on it's path towards EU membership. Any sign of unrest and a backslide away from the democratic ideals of the European project will have a detrimental effect on EU-Turkey relations, something which many Turkish are unlikely to welcome. This is not the only issue, however, as if Turkey were to join the EU, this would result in one of the countries involved in one of the most tragic conflicts of the Arab Spring, i.e. Syria, being right on Europe's doorstep, and could well lead to the wave of immigration and associated problems that Jordan and Lebanon are now seeing entering the EU via Turkey.
Given that Turkey is not yet a member of the EU, however, this is not yet a preeminent issue for the EU to worry about, but it is certainly one to watch. Rather less encouragingly, it is uncertain when this issue will be resolved, but it is guaranteedthat it will not be resolved while the incumbent leader fails to listen to the genuine wishes of his citizens, and will only result in further conflict and a deterioration in the state of affairs in Istanbul.
Another issue is that Turkey has long been known as a cradle of civilisation between East and West, with the Western half of the country traditionally looking more towards Europe, whilst the Eastern half is closer to Asia, both geographically and culturally. This presents a problem similar to that of Ukraine, whereby the country is geographically and politically divided between two different political structures, though to date this has not represented a significant problem for Turkey as there is no external power trying to imperalise or dictate to Turkey.
Turkey's problem is, rather, internal, and these latest protests will only have the effect of stalling potential membership for Turkey on it's path towards EU membership. Any sign of unrest and a backslide away from the democratic ideals of the European project will have a detrimental effect on EU-Turkey relations, something which many Turkish are unlikely to welcome. This is not the only issue, however, as if Turkey were to join the EU, this would result in one of the countries involved in one of the most tragic conflicts of the Arab Spring, i.e. Syria, being right on Europe's doorstep, and could well lead to the wave of immigration and associated problems that Jordan and Lebanon are now seeing entering the EU via Turkey.
Given that Turkey is not yet a member of the EU, however, this is not yet a preeminent issue for the EU to worry about, but it is certainly one to watch. Rather less encouragingly, it is uncertain when this issue will be resolved, but it is guaranteedthat it will not be resolved while the incumbent leader fails to listen to the genuine wishes of his citizens, and will only result in further conflict and a deterioration in the state of affairs in Istanbul.
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