EU expansion favored Central European states over Turkey despite Turkey’s earlier application

Evidence

Beginning in the 1980s a primary, perhaps the primary, foreign policy goal of Turkey’s Western-oriented elite has been to secure membership in the European Union. Turkey formally applied for membership in April 1987. In December 1989 Turkey was told that its application could not be considered before 1993. In 1994 the Union approved the applications of Austria, Finland, Sweden, and Norway, and it was widely anticipated that in the coming years favorable action would be taken on those of Poland, Hungary, and the Czech Republic, and later possibly on Slovenia, Slovakia, and the Baltic republics. The Turks were particularly disappointed that again Germany, the most influential member of the European Community, did not actively support their membership and instead gave priority to promoting membership for the Central European states. — Samuel P. Huntington, The Clash of Civilizations and the…, 395 (#expands, via linked claim)

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: The EU admitted post-communist European states ahead of Turkey despite Turkey’s earlier application. — Samuel P. Huntington, The Clash of Civilizations and the…, 395; Domestic fear of Muslim growth directly hardens European opposition to Turkish EU membership — Michael A. Reynolds and Thomas D. Grant, The Future of Europe and Its Muslims:…, 219; Turkey’s EU rejection was driven by religious identity, not stated criteria — Samuel P. Huntington, The Clash of Civilizations and the…, 396

Broader Connections

• The EU admitted post-communist European states ahead of Turkey despite Turkey’s earlier application. #expands (0.98) — Samuel P. Huntington, The Clash of Civilizations and the…, 395