Overview of the European Union

The European Union is both an inter-state and supra-national multinational organization consisting of 27 countries, with approximately 450 million citizens. It was established on the basis of political and economic cooperation. The most basic common policy areas are defined as trade, agriculture, transportation, fishing, competition and free movement of goods, people and capital. It is anticipated that subjects such as education, tax and banking will be included in the field of common policy in the near future.

The European Union took its present form as a result of many military, economic, intellectual and political developments and agreements signed one after another since the beginning of the 20th century.

Establishment of the European Union

It was necessary to take necessary steps to establish peace in Europe, which was worn out by the First and Second World Wars. The intellectuals of the period adopted the idea that the only way to sustain peace is through the establishment of an organization that will unite countries economically and politically. The French Foreign Minister of the time, Robert Schuman, prepared a plan to gather European countries around coal and steel, which were the most important topics at that time, based on the design of the former Secretary General of the League of Nations, Jean Monnet. European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC), the first supranational community in Europe within the framework of the Schuman plan, was established with the participation of France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg.

Six member states decided to establish the European Economic Community (EEC) based on a common market that includes various goods and services by signing the Treaty of Rome on 25 March 1957. Customs duties among six countries were completely abolished on July 1, 1968, and common policies were established, especially in trade and agriculture. In 1984, Italian politician Altiero Spinelli proposed to the European Parliament the "European Union" structure, which he designed for a more federal formation. After the proposal was approved, in 1986 the community strengthened the common market system with the practice called "Single European Act".

With the Maastricht Treaty signed in 1992, the EEC institutions were further strengthened and had wider powers. With the agreement, Europe became more politically integrated, the decision to transition to a common currency was taken and the European Union took its current name. In 20 years following the agreement, the Amsterdam (1997), Nice (2001) and Lisbon (2007) Treaties were signed, respectively. Each new treaty provided a more integrated union than the previous one.

How Does the European Union Work?

The Union of 27 member countries; operates with a multi-institutional structure in the fields of administration, audit, representation, legislation and decision making. Within this structure many institutions take place such as the European Court of Justice, the European Central Bank, the European Aviation Authority, the European Police Organization etc. Among these institutions, the European Council, the EU Commission and the EU Parliament stand out.

European Commission 

The European Commission is the designer and coordinator of European Union policies, in other words it is the executive body of the European Union. It is obliged to implement the budgets and programs prepared by the European Parliament and the Council of Ministers of the European Union. The Commission, which has 27 members, is also the guardian of the community treaties, as the body that initiates the legislative process and together with the European Court of Justice, ensures the correct application of union law. It represents the European Union in international platforms and in the negotiations of international agreements, especially in the field of trade and cooperation. Each of the members of the commission head a general directorate which are responsible for different policy areas.

Council of the European Union (Council of Ministers) 

The Council of the European Union acts as the legislative and in some areas as the executive body of the European Union. It also has responsibilities in many areas such as approving laws, coordinating the general economic and social policies of the member states, and approving the EU budget. Member countries are represented in the Council and preside over the Council alternately for six months.

The Council has nine different policy structures which are General Affairs and Foreign Affairs, Economic and Financial Affairs, Justice and Home Affairs, Employment, Social Policies, Health and Consumer Rights, Competitiveness, Telecommunication, Transport and Energy, Agriculture and Fisheries, Environment and Education, Youth and Culture. A minister from the national governments of each country attends the council meetings. The minister election is determined according to the agenda of the council meeting. Decisions are taken by simple majority, qualified majority or unanimity. The decisions are published in the official journal of the association. Regulations, guidelines and recommendations are binding for all countries.

European Parliament 

The European Parliament is the only elected body of the EU. Parliament represents the people in the EU. The team of the president of the parliament includes 7 vice presidents and 20 commissioners. Each of the 27 people come from a different member country. Parliament examines the draft laws prepared by the Commission and accepts or rejects them or issues amendments to them. The EU budget must be approved by the Parliament. EU spending is again controlled by the Parliament. Parliament can also vote of confidence on the Commission, and two-thirds of the deputies can dismiss the chairman of the Commission and all commissioners. With the Lisbon Treaty, the Parliament has gained almost the same level of importance and power as the other two main institutions.

Members and Candidate Countries

Member States: Germany, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Croatia, Netherlands, Ireland, Spain, Sweden, Italy, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Hungary, Malta, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia and Greece.

Candidate countries: Albania, Iceland, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Turkey

Possible Official Candidates: Bosnia and Herzegovina and Kosovo

The European Union-Turkey Relations

First Application and Ankara Agreement

European Economic Community (EEC) was established in 1958, and Turkey applied for membership on 31 July 1959. EEC Council of Ministers accepted the application of Turkey and has proposed signing of a partnership agreement that would be valid until settlement of the membership conditions. With the Ankara Agreement that was signed on 12 September 1963, and entered into force on 1 December 1964, Turkey's relations with the EU were officially launched. Ankara Agreement envisaged a three staged process for the EU integration of Turkey which are the preparatory stage, the transition period and a final period. During the preparatory period, in order to reduce economic differences between the parties', Turkey did not assume any obligations.

Additional Protocol

With the Additional Protocol signed on November 13, 1970 and entered into force in 1973, the preparation period foreseen in the Ankara Agreement has ended and the provisions of the Transitional Period and the obligations to be undertaken by the parties have been determined. In this period, it was envisaged to ensure the free movement of industrial products, agricultural products and persons between the parties and to complete the Customs Union. The EEC has unilaterally zeroed the customs duties and quantity restrictions on many industrial goods. Turkey was foreseen to reset the customs duties on industrial products originating from the EU and 22-year duration is given for the Customs Union to enter into force.

Turkey-EU relations followed an unsteady path due to political and economic reasons from the beginning of 1970's until the second half of the 1980s. Relations were formally suspended following the 12 September 1980 military coup. In 1983, Turkey has started the process of revitalization of the Turkey-EEC relations with the re-establishment of civil administration.

Full Membership Application

On April 14, 1987, Turkey applied for the membership without waiting to complete the pending obligations set by the Ankara Agreement. The Commission announced that the Community cannot accept a new member until it has completed its internal integration. Also it is stated that, although eligible to participate in the community, Turkey needs improvement in economic, social and political areas.

Customs Union

The Customs Union decision was accepted in 1995 and was put into effect on January 1, 1996. Accordingly, Turkey has abolished customs duties on EU industrial goods. In addition, all customs duties on commercial transactions between the parties have been abolished. For the European Union, this customs union agreement signed with Turkey has become the first major and functional customs union established with a non-member country. With this agreement, the relations between the parties have reached to an advanced point.

Full Member Nomination

Turkey's candidacy was officially approved at the Helsinki Summit held on 10-11 December 1999. In this context, it was decided to prepare the Accession Partnership Document also for Turkey. The first Accession Partnership Document prepared for Turkey was approved by the Council of the EU on 8 March 2001. The program and timetable for the implementation of the priorities of the Accession Partnership Document were approved by Turkey on March 19, 2001. The Accession Partnership Document was reviewed by the European Union in 2003, 2005, 2006 and 2008. The National Program was updated in 2003, 2005 and 2008.

Membership Negotiations

In the Brussels Summit held on 17 December 2004, Turkey-EU relations was seen another landmark moment and it was stated that Turkey met the political criteria sufficiently and decided to start negotiations on October 3, 2005. The screening process has been completed in all negotiation topics. As of 30 June 2016, 16 of 33 chapters have been opened and 1 chapter has been closed. Negotiations continue on 15 chapters. With the recommendation of the EU Commission, the negotiations on 8 chapters were partially suspended. Chapters 34 and 35 will also be discussed when the membership schedule becomes clear.

Turkey-EU Financial Cooperation

Since its establishment, the European Union (EU) provides various financial assistance to its member states, candidate countries and third countries on the basis of the founding agreements. A significant amount of resources, in the form of grants or loans, are transferred to the beneficiary countries through these aids to achieve the various objectives of the EU. With the financial aid, it is mainly aimed to prepare the candidate country structurally for EU membership.

In this context, pre-accession aids to candidate and potential candidate countries aim to bring countries' existing legal and institutional infrastructure closer to EU standards and practices.

Period Before 2007

The European Union has carried out various pre-accession assistance programs in order to prepare candidate and potential candidate countries for membership or to minimize the development difference between regions.

Before 2007, different programs that prepared the foundations of IPA were implemented:

• PHARE¹ (Coordinated Support for the Reconstructuring of Economics of Poland and Hungary),
• SAPARD² (Special Accession Program for Agriculture and Rural Development) and
• ISPA³ (Instrument for Structural Policies for Pre-Accession) has important roles.
• CARDS (Community Assistance for Reconstruction, Development and Stability in the Balkans)

Following the implementation of these programs, it was decided by the European Commission that the framework of the financial support to be provided to candidate and potential candidate countries between 2007-2013 should be arranged with a new tool. The experiences gained during the implementation of previous pre-accession assistance instruments were taken into consideration while preparing this new financial instrument. In this context, financial assistance carried out with tools such as PHARE, ISPA and SAPARD, which have different implementation mechanisms, were combined under the Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance (IPA).

For more detailed information http://ab.gov.tr/index.php?p=5&l=1

[2] Council Regulation (EC) 1268/1999 of 21 July 1999 on "Community Support for Agriculture and Rural Development Measures in the Candidate Countries of Central and Eastern Europe in the Pre-Accession Period"

[3] Council Regulation establishing the Pre-Accession Structural Policy Instrument (EC) No 1267/1999 of 21 June 1999

EU Funds in Turkey

The European Union (EU) is conducting a series of funds and mechanisms to prepare candidate and potential candidate countries for membership. These supports which Turkey is also benefitting, can be examined under the following headings:

• Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance (IPA)
• European Union Programmes

Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance (IPA)

The purpose of the Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance is to provide EU support to beneficiary countries in implementing reforms for Union membership. The countries which are benefiting from this instrument are Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, Northern Macedonia, Serbia and Turkey.

While the IPA budget was 11.5 billion Euros in the first period covering the years 2007-2013, this figure increased to 11.7 million Euros in the second period (2014-2020). Turkey's total share in IPA in its second period is about 3.5 million euros (excluding cross-border cooperation).

The IPA funds provided to Turkey are being utillized as different programs for 9 priority sectors identified under the policy areas in the "IPA-II Period Indicative Turkey Strategy Document" which is approved by the European Commission decision.

European Union Programmes

EU Programs support the establishment of partnership awareness by improving cooperation among member countries. It is created in thematic areas and aims to contribute to the creation of common solutions to the problems in these areas. Turkey participates to seven (7) programs implemented by the European Union in the 2014-2020 period:

1. Erasmus+: Education, Training, Youth and Sports Program; in short Erasmus+ supports cooperation in education and training, including vocational training, mobility activities, periodic partnerships and youth activities. Turkey's National Agency is responsible for the coordination. For detailed information, please visit https://www.ua.gov.tr/.
2. Horizon 2020: For the Framework Program for Research and Innovation Program - Horizon 2020 which is implemented between 2014-2020, Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TÜBITAK) was commissioned for the national coordination. For detailed information, please visit https://turkeyinh2020.eu/.
3. COSME: A program that aims to increase the competitiveness of businesses and especially SMEs. For national co-ordination, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Program and Support Administration of Turkey (KOSGEB) has been appointed. For detailed information, please visit https://cosme.kosgeb.gov.tr/.
4. EaSI: Under the Employment and Social Innovation Program (EaSI), support is provided in the areas of qualified and sustainable employment, provision of adequate social protection, combatting social exclusion and poverty, and improving working conditions.
5. Customs 2020: The main goal of the program is to increase the functionality of the customs union. In this context, support is provided to member countries for the efficient functioning of the domestic market in the field of customs.
6. Fiscalis 2020: It aims to improve the taxation system of the domestic market by strengthening cooperation between countries and to ensure that it operates regularly.
7. European Solidarity Program (ESC): A new European Union initiative aiming to meet social needs, creating opportunities for young people to volunteer, work or engage in networking activities in projects that benefit society in their home country or abroad in order to promote their development.