Turkey & the Balkans
Turkey and the EU: Can stalemate be avoided?
16 December 2010
Turkey's accession to the EU is heading for an impasse. The bulk of the membership talks are blocked. Unless there is progress over Cyprus or Nicolas Sarkozy starts welcoming Turkish membership – both unlikely prospects – the EU and Turkey will soon run out of policy chapters to negotiate.
Turkish politics and the fading magic of EU enlargement
07 September 2010
Open hostility towards Turkish accession in some EU countries has made it hard for Turkish politicians to continue preparing the country for membership.
Pipeline politics: Why Nabucco is stuck
29 January 2010
Last year, plans for the Nabucco pipeline – almost a decade in the making – appeared finally to make some headway. In March, the EU earmarked €200 million for preparatory work.
Can Turkey combine EU accession and regional leadership?
25 January 2010
The looming deadlock in Turkey's EU accession bid stands in contrast with its increasingly active role in the Middle East, the Caucasus and Central Asia. Some observers worry that Ankara is turning away from the West and is instead pursuing a 'neo-Ottoman' or 'Islamist' foreign policy.
Is Turkey Iran's friend?
04 November 2009
Is Turkey really Iran’s “friend”, as Recep Tayyip Erdogan claimed in a recent interview with the Guardian newspaper? Erdogan’s visit last week to Tehran suggests so.
Is Russia a partner to the EU in Bosnia?
19 March 2009
Where does Bosnia fit in the broader picture of EU – Russian relations? The EU and Russia are ostensibly partners in building a viable government in this Balkan country, but for much of 2007-08 Russia encouraged Bosnian politicians to resist EU-sponsored police reforms. This policy brief argues that Russian policy...
What does the war in Georgia mean for EU foreign policy?
15 August 2008
The war in Georgia divided the European Union instead of uniting it. Some member-states condemned Russia and gave (non-military) aid to the Georgian government; others accused Tbilisi of provoking the war.
The EU will want more from Serbia than arrests
25 July 2008
On July 21st 2008, Serbian security agents hauled Radovan Karadzic off a bus in Belgrade and took him into custody. The long-wanted wartime leader of the Bosnian Serbs now awaits extradition to the International War Crimes Tribunal (ICTY) in The Hague, where he stands accused of crimes against humanity for his role in the 1992-95 Bosnia war.
Can the EU thaw frozen conflicts
30 June 2008
The Czech government floated proposals in May that would see the EU take a more active role in solving frozen conflicts in eastern Europe. The Czechs hold the EU’s rotating presidency next year, so their wish may become reality.
Turkey's turmoil, the EU's reaction
10 April 2008
Political turmoil is nothing new in Turkey. After six years of unusual stability, tensions have mounted since early 2007. The army threatened to topple the AKP government in case it made Abdullah Gul president.
The Czechs in the EU: In the middle of the class
10 March 2008
On a recent visit to Prague, people kept asking me how the Czech Republic was doing as EU member-state, and whether it was a successful member.
Kosovo - the economic dilemma
29 February 2008
Now that Kosovo’s independence party is over, the hard work begins. Despite the efforts of the UN and the EU, the institutions of government remain fragile, corruption is rife, and organised crime is a problem.
Turkey's role in European energy security
12 December 2007
Turkey – located between big energy producers and the EU market – is crucial for Europe’s energy security. However, plans for the Nabucco pipeline as an alternative to Russian gas supplies are in trouble.
The EU must stand firm on Bosnia
03 December 2007
The EU’s inability to halt the Bosnian civil war of 1992-95 marked the nadir of its attempts to build an effective foreign policy. Eventually the Americans helped the Europeans stitch Bosnia back together, at the Dayton peace conference.
What Europeans think about Turkey and why
25 September 2007
Surveys show that a majority of EU citizens are against Turkish membership. This matters since France, Austria and probably other countries too will hold a referendum on Turkish accession.
Where next for Turkey?
24 July 2007
Some of Turkey’s critics say that it has no place in the EU because it is not a European country. Others criticise the quality of its democracy.
EU business and Turkish accession
22 June 2007
Many EU politicians and their voters are unsure about the merits of Turkish accession. Europe’s entrepreneurs are not. They are showing confidence by investing billions into the fast-growing Turkish economy, partly because they expect that EU accession will continue to change the country for the better.
Serbia's European choice
19 June 2007
Serbia's accession prospects are looking up, following the formation of a new government in Belgrade and the resumption of SAA talks with the EU. However, disagreements over Kosovo could quickly derail the process again.
Turkey before the election
15 June 2007
I have recently come back from Turkey, where the mood is a mixture of relief, hope and anxiety: relief that the army has remained in the barracks; hope that the early election in July will result in a workable compromise between the AKP and the secularists; and anxiety that the crisis that started in April has done lasting damage to Turkish society and its political system.
Sarkozy, secularism and Turkey’s European future
01 June 2007
Can things get worse for Turkey? The presidential election is stalled; the army threatens to intervene; millions are protesting in the streets; EU negotiations remain partly suspended; terrorism in the South-East could prompt military forays into northern Iraq; and the new French president wants to see Turkey in a Mediterranean...