Europeanization of Turkish foreign policy towards Cyprus issue under the jdp government: myth or reality

Abstract

After Justice and Development Party came to power on 3 November 2002 elections, the JDP government has made the EU membership as a policy priority, and tied Turkey’s accession to the EU with the solution of the Cyprus problem. In this respect, this study aims to assess whether a change in Turkish foreign policy towards Cyprus has occurred since 2002 and if so whether this change is related to the Turkish accession process. Although previous governments recognize the Cyprus issue as a vital national security interest that can not be sacrificed for the EU membership, the JDP government has developed its Cyprus policy in order to overcome the challenges against the EU membership. The external incentive for a change in Turkish foreign policy towards Cyprus is the motivation for the EU membership. In this regard, the JDP government has developed its discourse over Cyprus compatible with the EU rhetoric. However, the weakening of credibility of the EU rewards and threats slowed down the “Europeanization” process in Turkey and “Europeanization” of Turkish foreign policy towards Cyprus remain solely in rhetoric despite the initial pro-activism of the JDP government in the earlier phase of accession negotiations.