The Ottoman Empire was under sharia law for centuries [1]. Unlike those areas of the old Roman Empire that stayed Christian, the Islamized former-Roman provinces lost legal and cultural continuity with the pre-Islamic civilization that preceeding the conquest.

I agree that Turkey has strikingly anti-religoius laws, similar to France’s code. I am not sure that the best way to protect human rights is to prevent people from having the right to express their religion.

Still, Russia’s invasion of Georgia [2,3] is a clarifying moment. Both Turkey and Europe need to be in Europe, sooner rather than later. It is much easier for Europe to survive the cultural conflict that large-scale Turkish immigration would bring than to resist Russian aggression.

[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religion_in_the_Ottoman_Empire
[2] http://www.tdaxp.com/archive/2008/08/08/why-did-russia-invade-georgia.html
[3] http://www.tdaxp.com/archive/2008/08/10/8808-like-8290-and-91101.html

Your arguments are way too biased, and lacks any connections with truth. I advise you to go visit Turkey.

Thanks for your comment.

You raise important points. I think from a geopolitical perspective the biggest question Europe faces on Turkey is with regard to Russia. Would accepting Turkey slow down or speed up membership for Ukraine?

With Ukraine in Europe, Russia is fundamentally weakened. Turkey also would hurt Russia. These are both important objectives. [1]

I hope they do not conflict.

[1] http://www.tdaxp.com/archive/2008/08/14/russia-is-bad.html

To even consider Turkey in the EU is not right, beacuse they have shown time after time tha they simply are not ready. The freedom of speech for example, Hrant Dink , wrote about the armenian genocide, waht happened to him, murder.
And for example sweden wehere I live they don’t edmit the armenian genocide beacuse they think Turkey will not develop, as many other countries also have said the same thing, but i think it’s completely the opposite, they develop even more if they edmit that they performed a genocide, beacuse then they will become modern and more sofisticated.

And not to think of their barbaric way to put up a big turkish flag made by lights on the mountains of Armenia and Cyprus so all of the population can see it.

That’s just coupe of many reasons why Turkey not to be even considered in any question about the EU.

At this point, I cannot see Turkey as a lost cause. But I can't see it in the EU, either. I'm not certain I can still see Turkey in NATO.

However, he was a socialist, and his economic legacy still hobbles Turkey. His attempts at creating Republican institutions were not that strong, prompting several military “corrections” of governments. (A military coup is not a mature way to move a government, and so this route is out if Turkey is serious about joining Europe — unless the coup is defeated.) His extreme secularism oppressed valid religions, and paved the way for the backlash we are seeing today.

The current Turkish government has in some ways been very cooperative (pressuring Northern Cyprus to sign an agreement that helped marginalize the Greek south, for example). However, on both the US alliance and freedom of speech, it has been week.

More vital to the US than getting Turkey in Europe is broadening the EU with low-labor, pro-American states generally. It is doubtful that Ukraine, say, would be as controversial a choice as Turkey. A wise strategy might to to cease reinforcing the failure of Turkish europeanization, and instead flow with Ukrainian momentum.

(Plus, while adding Turkey to Europe would have unknown effects on the Global War on Terrorism, an EUkraine would permanently hobble the Russian threat to the continent. [2])

[1] http://catholicgauze.blogspot.com/2006/02/nations-and-nation-states-in-europe.html
[2] http://junkpolitics.blogspirit.com/archive/2006/01/05/putin-turns-germany.html