2015 enlargement package - In a set of annual reports adopted today, the European Commission has assessed where the countries of the Western Balkans and Turkey stand in preparingto meet EU membership requirements, and sets out what needs to be done to address the remaining challenges.Presenting the annual Enlargement Package, Commissioner Johannes Hahn said: "The current refugee crisis shows how crucial close cooperation between the EU and the countries in south-east Europe is. The EU enlargement process, covering the Western Balkans and Turkey, is a powerful tool to strengthen the rule of law and human rights in these countries. It also boosts the economy and promotes regional cooperation. A clear European perspective gradually transforms our partner countries and strengthens stability around our Union. Our firm commitment to EU enlargement, and to the conditions it involves, is therefore a long-term investment in Europe's own security and prosperity".
Common challenges
The region has been seriously affected by the refugee crisis. Turkey is providing substantial support to more than 2 million Syrian refugees on its territory. The Western Balkans, in particular the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and Serbia, have managed a substantial amount of third country nationals transiting their countries since the beginning of the year.The migration challenge makes more than ever a case for increased cooperation with enlargement countries, and the EU is providing substantial support to this end.
Mavi Boncuk |
ENGLISH TEXT
Brussels, 10.11.2015 SWD(2015) 216 final
COMMISSION STAFF WORKING DOCUMENT TURKEY 2015 REPORT[1]
Accompanying the document
COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT, THE COUNCIL, THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COMMITTEE AND THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS
EU Enlargement Strategy
This report covers the period from October 2014 to September 2015. It is based on input from a variety of sources, including contributions from the government of Turkey, the EU Member States, European Parliament reports and information from various international and non-governmental organisations. As a rule, legislation or measures which are under preparation or awaiting parliamentary approval have not been taken into account.
Summary of the report
As regards the political criteria, the pace of reforms slowed down, also due to protracted
elections. The outgoing government made efforts to reinvigorate the EU accession process.
However, this repeated commitment was offset by the adoption of key legislation in the area
of the rule of law, freedom of expression and freedom of assembly that ran against European
standards. The political landscape continues to be divided.
The 7 June general election saw a record 84% turnout, a clear sign of the strength of Turkish
democracy with all major political parties being represented in the new parliament. However,
a government could not be formed by the constitutional deadline and repeat elections took
place on 1 November. Amongst the shortcomings in the legal framework regulating elections,
the 10% threshold of votes for parties to be represented in parliament need to be addressed as
a priority.
In the reporting period Turkey saw its security situation increasingly deteriorate. The
authorities launched an extensive anti-terror military and security campaign against the
Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), which remains on the EU list of terrorist organisations, both in Turkey and in Iraq. The settlement process of the Kurdish issue came to a halt despite
earlier positive developments on the issue.
Turkey was struck by the deadliest terrorist attack in its modern history, on 10 October in
Ankara, claiming the lives of scores of demonstrators gathering for a peace rally sponsored by
trade unions and opposition parties' youth branches. It is essential that swift and transparent
investigations are conducted into these heinous acts which were aimed to destabilise and harm
Turkey's democracy.
Turkey is moderately prepared in the area of public administration reform. It has a strong
public service and is committed to a user-oriented administration. However, impetus for a
more comprehensive reform is weak. Recent dismissals and demotions in the context of the
fight against the ‘parallel structure’ were a source of concern.
Civil society has remained active, growing in numbers and continuing to be involved in many
spheres of public life, but restrictions to freedom of assembly remain a serious concern.
Turkey's judicial system has some level of preparation. The independence of the judiciary and
the principle of separation of powers have been undermined and judges and prosecutors have
been under strong political pressure. The government's campaign against the alleged ‘parallel
structure’ within the state was actively pursued, at times encroaching on the independence of
the judiciary. Substantial efforts are needed to restore and ensure its independence.
As regards the fight against corruption, Turkey has some level of preparation to effectively
prevent and fight corruption. Turkey's track record in the fight against corruption remains
inadequate. Corruption remains widespread. The undue influence by the executive in the
investigation and prosecution of high-profile corruption cases continues to constitute a major
concern.
Turkey has achieved some level of preparation in the fight against organised crime. Financial
investigations remain under-used. Precautionary freezing of assets is rarely applied and the
level of assets confiscated is low. The absence of data protection legislation is an impediment
for wider cooperation with EU agencies and Member States.
Turkey’s Constitution guarantees the protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms.
Implementation had considerably improved over the past few years. However, major
shortcomings remain. The enforcement of rights stemming from the European Convention on
Human Rights (ECHR) and the case law of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) is
not fully ensured. There is an urgent need to adopt a comprehensive framework law on
combating discrimination in line with European standards. Turkey also needs to effectively
guarantee the rights of women, children, and lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex
(LGBTI) individuals and ensure sufficient attention to the social inclusion of vulnerable
groups such as the Roma.
There was significant backsliding in the areas of freedom of expression and freedom of
assembly. Legislation on internal security contradicts the measures outlined in the March
2014 action plan on the prevention of violations of the ECHR by granting broad discretionary
powers to the law enforcement agencies without adequate oversight. After several years of
progress on freedom of expression, serious backsliding was seen over the past two years, with
some level of preparation in this field. While it had been possible to discuss some sensitive
and controversial issues in a free environment, ongoing and new criminal cases against
journalists, writers or social media users are of considerable concern. Changes to the internet
law, which are a significant setback from European standards, increased the government’s
powers to block content without a court order on an unduly wide range of grounds.
Turkey supported the resumption of the talks on the Cyprus settlement in May and expressed
its support for the UNSG Special Advisor’s efforts. Turkey’s continued commitment and
contribution in concrete terms to this comprehensive settlement remains crucial. However,
Turkey has still not fulfilled its obligation to ensure full and non-discriminatory
implementation of the Additional Protocol to the Association Agreement and has not removed
all obstacles to the free movement of goods, including restrictions on direct transport links
with Cyprus. There was no progress on normalising bilateral relations with the Republic of
Cyprus. The conclusions on Turkey that were adopted by the Council (General Affairs and
External Relations) on 11 December 2006 and endorsed by the European Council on 14/15
December 2006 remain in force. They stipulate that negotiations will not be opened on eight
chapters [2] relating to Turkey’s restrictions regarding the Republic of Cyprus and no chapter
will be provisionally closed until the Commission confirms that Turkey has fully
implemented the Additional Protocol to the Association Agreement.
Turkey needs to commit itself unequivocally to good neighbourly relations and to the peaceful
settlement of disputes in accordance with the United Nations Charter, having recourse, if
necessary, to the International Court of Justice. In this context, the EU has expressed once
again serious concern and urged Turkey to avoid any kind of threat or action directed against
a Member State, or source of friction or actions that damages good neighbourly relations and
the peaceful settlement of disputes.
Regarding the economic criteria, the Turkish economy is well advanced and can be
considered a functioning market economy. Economic growth has been moderate. Turkey
continued to face external and internal imbalances, calling for adjustments in monetary and
fiscal policies as well as an acceleration of comprehensive structural reforms. The large
current account deficit continued to contribute to the economy's vulnerability to shifts in
global monetary conditions and risk sentiment. On the internal side, inflation continued to run
at a relatively high rate, which is problematic in terms of macro-economic stability, resource
allocation and re-distributive effects. It again exceeded the official target; nevertheless the
central bank cut interest rates. Public debt has attained a sustainable level, but the general
government structural balance has been significantly negative. Unemployment increased
slightly to an annual average of 9.9 %. Some progress was made in structural reforms such as
improving schooling rates and further liberalising the energy sector. Such reforms need to
accelerate to improve the functioning of the markets for goods, services and labour.
Turkey has a good level of preparation in acquiring the capacity to cope with the competitive
pressure and market forces within the EU. The quality of education and gender equality in
education needs particular attention. Efforts are needed to ensure the transparency of state aid
and to remove constraints and exceptions in the area of public procurement.
Regarding its ability to take on the obligations of membership, Turkey has continued to
align with the acquis, albeit at a slower pace, and has achieved a good level of preparation in
many areas. Turkey is well advanced in the areas of company law, financial services, transEuropean networks and science and research. The country has also achieved a good level of preparation in the areas of free movement of goods, intellectual property law, enterprise and
industrial policy, customs union and external relations. Turkey remained highly mobilised to
tackle the extraordinary migration and asylum challenges. Turkey has achieved a good level
of preparation in the area of financial control. Further significant efforts are however needed
to implement public internal financial control at all levels. Turkey is only moderately
prepared on public procurement as important gaps remain in its alignment. Turkey is also
moderately prepared in the area of statistics where further significant efforts are needed across
the board. In all areas, more attention needs to be given to enforce legislation whilst many
areas require further significant progress to achieve legislative alignment with the EU acquis.
In the past year, events in Syria and Iraq meant Turkey had to face a further increase in the
number of refugees and displaced people. Turkey is currently hosting the largest refugee
population in the world, of which close to 2 million are Syrians. Managing such a huge influx
of refugees and displaced persons is a major challenge for Turkey, which has already spent
more than EUR 6.7 billion to this purpose.
[1] Enlargement process
The current enlargement agenda covers the countries of the Western Balkans and Turkey. Accession negotiations have been open with Turkey since 2005 but are moving forward only slowly. Accession negotiations have been underway with Montenegro since 2012 and with Serbia since 2014. The EU accession process with the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia – a candidate country since 2005 – remains at an impasse. Albania was granted candidate status in 2014 and is addressing a number of key priorities before the Commission can recommend the opening of accession negotiations. A Stabilisation and Association Agreement (SAA) with Bosnia and Herzegovina entered into force in June. An SAA with Kosovo was signed in October 2015.
For detailed findings and recommendations on each country see:
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