The role of religion in Turkey-European Union relations

It is not possible to claim that Turkey's process of the membership for the EU, which is described as "a long road ahead", has considerably advanced since the relations between the two parties officially begun in 1959. The objections based on cultural-religious structure as well the practical objections (such as size of the country in terms of area and population, poverty, rurality, instability of neighbor countries) have increasingly raised. Moreover, the claim that "Turkey has a different cultural-religious history than Europe's and an incompatible system of values" has been uttered by many political and religious circles. Comparing to EU countries, Turkey's differences or its values seen as discrepancies by the citizens of the EU cause the membership of Turkey for the EU to be discussed in its all aspects, especially cultural, religious, and economical dimensions. This study aims to explore the influence level of cultural and religious differences in social and political areas to the relation of Turkey and the EU, which I believe as one of the most prominent obstacles in front of Turkey's process of membership for the EU. Thus, for better understanding the patterns of Turkey and the EU relations, it is necessary to present the role of the cultural factors, and especially the role of religion, in the process of membership in terms of Turkey's compatibility to the EU norms. So, I have examined "to what extent the two parties' religious beliefs effect the unifying negotiations and impress the public opinion" in Turkey-the EU relations by keeping the images of historical memory in mind. By taking these issues into the account, I have studied the importance of religion in the identity of the EU, its influence to the process of the membership, and the potential contribution of Turkey with its distinct religion and culture to this identity. Thus, this dissertation aims to give an analysis about Turkey's compatibility to the EU norms with its different cultural/religious tradition and to present an evaluation of the influences of religious opinions and preferences on the two parties' decision-making process in Turkey-the EU relations. Keywords: Turkey, European Union, Religion, Identity, Culture, Modernization, Globalization, Secularization