Azerbaijan, Baku, Feb. 4 / Trend , E.Ostapenko/
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's emotional speech against Israel's hostilities in Gaza and his following leaving the room in Davos did not boost Turkey's standing either in the region, Europe, or the U.S.. But that will not affect Turkey's integration in the European Union, experts say.
"I do not think that this behavior will be seen a good light in Europe," European expert for Balkan countries policies, Dr. James Ker-Lindsay wrote Trend via e-mail.
During his speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, last week Turkish Prime Minister was indignant that he was given less time to speak than the Israeli President and accused Israel of aggression and killing civilians during a three-week military operation in the Gaza Strip, which officially ended on Jan. 18. Upon completion of his speech, Erdogan left the room.
This is not the first time that Turkish Prime expressed his sharp views and left the room. Emotional accusations against Israel could be heard as early as 2004, when Erdogan condemned Israel for assassination of the ideological leader of the Palestinian resistance movement Hamas.
While on an official visit to Brussels in January, Erdogan responded in a rather abrupt manner to a Cyprus MP who had said Turkish troops are invaders.
Emotionality of the Turkish leader was perceived with frowns in Europe. It will adversely affect Turkey's position in the Middle East.
Lindsey believes Erdogan already has a reputation for letting his temper get the better of him.
"Of course, tensions do emerge between European leaders and sometimes these get very heated. However, such outbursts are usually kept behind closed doors," wrote London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) leading expert for Balkan countries policies James Ker-Lindsay.
Turkey has always been a key player in the Middle East and in the peace process in particular, Fabrizio Tassinari, European expert on Mediterranean region, said.
Precisely because it combines its traditional ties with the Arab-Muslim world with very close political and economic relations with Israel, Tassinari, Associate Fellow of Centre for European Policy Studies (CEPS) Brussels, told Trend via e-mail.
After this incident, it is unlikely that Israel will trust Turkey and support its mediation in settling Middle East conflict, Lindsey said.
Turkey will prove itself to be more powerful in the region if it could really mediate a final resolution of the Nagorno Karabakh issue, Michael Emerson, European expert on EU relations with Turkey and Cyprus, said.
For the moment Erdogan's action is just words, Emerson, Programme Director for Centre for European Policy Studies (CEPS) Brussels, told Trend via e-mail.
The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries appeared in 1988 due to Armenian territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Armenia has occupied 20% of the Azerbaijani lands including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and its seven surrounding districts. The Co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group (Russia, France and USA) have held peaceful negotiations over 15 years. Over the recent period, Turkey has been actively making an initiative of mediation in the conflict.
I don't think it will do much harm to Turkey's EU integration at this stage - but only because there appears to be no integration to speak of at the moment, Lindsey said.
Turkish political scientist Deniz Altınbas, however, considers that the last events will not create problems in the process of Turkey's entrance into the European Union. She said that Erdogan's speech strengthened his position in the Middle East.
"Moreover, strengthening Turkey as regional player increases its chances for entrance into the European Union," Altınbas, expert of Eurasian center for strategic studies, told Trend in a telephone conversation from Ankara.
The talks on entrance of Ankara into the European Union started in 2005. According to the forecasts of experts, it will be able to become full-right member of the EU for 10-15 years.
Basic obstacles on Turkey's way to the European Union are the territorial disputes with Greek Cyprus, which arose as a result of split of Cyprus into two parts in 1974.
In the case of entrance into the EU, Turkey will enlarge the domestic market of the EU and will provide experienced labor force to the European companies, which suffer from the swift aging of indigenous population.
B. Hasanov and E. Tariverdiyeva contributed to the article.
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