13/12/2004 9:48:59 am
Five Days Left Until Final Test for Europe. This Friday, the leaders of the EU countries will decide on whether they will give Turkey the green light to start accession negotiations or not. Tomorrow, the European Parliament will vote; in the Committee there was a clear "yes" with 50 votes pro and 18 against. The debate all over Europe has become more intense during the last weeks and the opponents have mobilised. Recently, the latest Christian Democrat candidate for Chancellor in Germany, Edmund Stoiber, said that if they win the next election, they would "do whatever is necessary to prevent Turkey from becoming a full member of the EU". The Swedish PM Göran Persson predicts that the meeting on Friday may be dramatic. Indeed this is a test for the EU of enormous principal importance. The path chosen will decide if the EU is a union of universal values or a club dominated by protectionist and reactionary forces longing for ethnically homogeneous societies. A strong and clear "yes" from the EU would set an example for the world that countries where the population is largely muslim can be modern and democratic. And there is no plan B, nobody knows what would happen if the EU leaders would say no. Any country that fulfils the basic criteria on democracy and human rights should be able to become a member. First Turkey, then Ukraine!


Of course Turkey has an important place under the stars.
Read a thorough description of the situation in Dagens Nyheter (in Swedish) - >