The Daily Telegraph

Europe must move forward with Turkey

- mevlüt Çavuşoğlu Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu is Turkey’s Foreign Minister

Urban myths have crept into European public debates about Turkey. Every now and then, one has to pause and deflate a few of them. Let me do so on five key issues.

First, Syria. Turkey has been pulling every string to achieve three objectives. It is leading efforts to alleviate the humanitari­an suffering. The number of Syrian refugees exceeds 5.5 million (or five Birmingham­s) and most have taken shelter in Turkey. We have become the top per capita spender on humanitari­an assistance in the entire world.

We are also taking the initiative to deny terrorist entities any room in Syria. Turkey is using force against both the Kurdish PKK/YPJ and Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isil), and is taking the utmost care not to harm civilians. We will continue to expose the dark propaganda that aims to mislead public opinion about Turkey’s role in Syria. We have also exposed collusion among terror networks, such as how PKK/YPG terrorists are purporting to fight Isil while allowing them to roam freely.

Turkey is working hard to promote a political solution, too. From the Astana talks to the Sochi congress, Turkey has been on the side of ultimately engenderin­g a political solution to the Syrian quagmire at the Un-led Geneva talks, based on Syria’s territoria­l integrity and reflecting the will of the Syrian people. Operation Olive Branch, launched by Turkey, aims to clear the road to peace while also protecting our citizens by taking action against the threat to Syria’s territoria­l integrity posed by terrorist entities. Fighting Isil must not mean that we do not fight the other terrorists. We ask the US and others to stop arming the PKK/YPG.

Secondly, the Middle East. This region is Europe’s neighbourh­ood and urgently needs a grand bargain. Europe found peace when, in Helsinki in the mid-seventies, we recognised the inviolabil­ity of frontiers and pledged to respect human rights and fundamenta­l freedoms. The Middle East needs that sort of a contract now more than ever to find its own peace.

Nation states are under attack from transnatio­nal forces, some benign and some – such as separatism, sectariani­sm and terrorism – harmful. The resilience of nation states needs strengthen­ing against such harmful forces. This, and not the endless splinterin­g of states, is the formula for the security and wellbeing of everyone in the region and beyond. The region needs an order that is home-grown and takes existing borders as a given, including a state for the Palestinia­ns as mandated by the United Nations seven decades ago.

Thirdly, Turkey’s fundamenta­l orientatio­n. Turkey is a strong, resolute, active Nato ally and European democracy that is filtering out massive numbers of hazards before they can reach Europe. As such, Turkey is an essential organ of the European and transatlan­tic body. It is true that my people are unhappy with the positions taken by several allies on a number of topics. While there is unity in diversity, we have to stop before we go from diversity to discord. We must show mutual, not one-sided, solidarity.

Fourthly, Turkey’s EU membership. This is to everyone’s benefit and the pace is controlled by the EU, not by Turkey. But let us set our optics right: without Turkey, Europe will be left exposed and vulnerable. In the economic sense, too, Turkey is an asset, thanks to an economy that is growing at levels that any European country would love to emulate. The idea that Turkey will be a burden to the EU is therefore incorrect.

It should be appropriat­e to prepare our population­s for the positive eventualit­y of Turkish membership rather than caving in to extremists that threaten to redefine the political centre in too many European countries. Protecting democracy, peace and prosperity will depend on how Europe tackles the drift to the extremes, and Turkey is part of the solution. A visa liberalisa­tion regime is the first step forwards to take.

Fifthly, democracy in Turkey. Only 20 months ago, a group of fanatics sought to overthrow democracy by force. In an epic confrontat­ion, the people and the state of Turkey defeated this attempt by a novel form of terror organisati­on called FETÖ.

The Turkish people want to live in a democratic country. Now, we are going through a necessary phase during which we make sure that FETÖ members, including sleeper cells, are removed from all positions of power in the state organs, media, business and academia. This is a painful process but we act strictly within the confines of law. Mechanisms to review decisions are in force. All this when we are simultaneo­usly fighting other terrorists across the border. The state of emergency will end as soon as there is no longer a need for it, and no one will be happier for it to be over than our own government.

In our day and age, the informatio­n and disinforma­tion that flow in all directions at unpreceden­ted volumes confuse even the sage. However, it is time to move beyond such confusions, for all of us to re-intensify contacts and processes at all levels, and to show mutual solidarity.

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