Is Turkey Awkward or Indispensable Candidate for EU Membership?

This research paper presents an analysis of the relationship between the EU and Turkey in general and the EU's expansion in particular by using a different approach. It seeks to construct a more comprehensive framework by assessing main motivations and interests behind the EU's Enlargement Policy and Turkey's keenness for full EU membership. it examines security, economic and political factors behind the EU and Turkey relations by assessing the Turkish case not merely on an individual costs/benefits basis in isolation from the other factors but on the basis of a comparison with previous enlargement, in order to assess whether Turkey is different and problematic, and has been treated differently.

A number of motivations and interests of the expansion of EU fırst in this study are argued by referring Turkish case and this is then followed by the history of the EU- Turkey relations. Last two chapters argue the security, economic and political aspects of the EU-Turkey relations in an analysis of obstacles to Turkey's prospect for accession by arguing whether Turkey is an awkward indispensable candidate for the full EU membership.

(Abstract)