Posted on 10/03/2005 9:38:38 AM PDT by knighthawk
Agreed. You should have seen them in 1939.
Best news I have heard all day! This is wonderful and I can only hope that (despite the Austrian Empire being allied with the Ottoman Empire in World War I) Austria sees the way clear for the preservation for what made Europe great. England has been way too pro-Turkish for centuries (e.g. Crimean War and the 1878 peace treaty) and I am glad to see their threats not moving Austria.
Good for them! Let's see how long they can hold out. Islam is at war with the world. NO Muslim country should be admitted into the EU. Once they get in they'll start to change things, make demands, make threats. You know it and I know it. And Austria knows it. Why doesn't the rest of the EU know it?
How was Turkey any different from France or Germany in that respect? The Turkish government wanted to allow US troops, but the elected legislature vetoed the plan. That's the way decisions should be made, whether we agree with them or not. The fact is, even though it is sometimes at odds with the United States, Turkey is a bulwark of freedom and stability in an unstable and unfree region. It is an ally of Israel and a modern democracy. To exclude Turkey from the EU is to send the message that Turkey can go to hell, that Europe doesn't care about it, which is exactly what the crazy Islamists tell the Turks the West thinks about them.
What part of 'Europe' is so hard for people to understand? A "European Union" is for Europeans, and whatever Turkey may be it obviously is not European. Some kind of "priveleged partnership" as Austria has proposed is plenty of 'reward' for anything Turkey needs to be rewarded for..... why on earth should the EU start expanding into the Middle East? Makes as much sense as a "North American" union that starts expanding into Asia....
This is an admirable action on the part of my grandparents' birthplace.
I am very well familiar with the geography of the region, since I've lived there. Note that I said "a nation should be European"; I did not say "a country should be in Europe".. ;^)
EU waits on Ankara's entry talks decision
From that article: Condoleezza Rice, the US Secretary of State, had earlier intervened phoning Turkish prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan giving America's continued support on a deal.
Quite frankly I do not understand what the US has to do with EU's membership negotiations. (Nor do I consider the EU has any right to interfere in say trade negotiations between the US and Mexico.)
True, however border controls are already back in place throughout Europe, following the Madrid bombings, so terrorists would still have to sneak across several guarded borders. Not a guarantee, certainly, but a safeguard. In any event, it doesn't seem like terrorists are having too hard a time getting into Europe at the moment, so I'm not sure how much worse things will get.
And quite right you are!
Yep!!
Turkey smerky, screw 'em.
Much of it is physically in Europe. And it is as much a European country, culturally speaking, as Greece or Poland. Have you been to Turkey?
Makes as much sense as a "North American" union that starts expanding into Asia....
Well, NAFTA protocols now include Chile, which isn't, as far as I know, in North America, and NATO includes a few countries (including Turkey) that seem mighty far away from the North Atlantic.
Turkey was historically in Asia minor its not european.
I'm not agreeing with the decision, just saying it's not the be-all or the end-all. Turkey is an ally of the United States and Israel in the war on terror, regardless.
Umm.. No it's not. Only 3.05% of Turkish territory is in Europe, and just less than 10% of the population.
Turkey showed their true colors on the Iraq war. To hell with them.
Eastern Thrace is 23,764 sq km (9,175 square miles). Anatolia is 755,688 sq km (291,773 square miles).
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