1000 Sofia; 56 Solunska Str.; phone (+359 2) 930 6619; fax(+359 2) 951 6348; e-mail:
International Conference
Sofia, 19-20 April, 2008
Turkey and the European Union: Accession Prospects and
Non-accession Alternatives
Conference concept and goals
The question of whether Turkey will be accepted as full-fledged member of the European Union (EU) is still open, despite the official launch of accession negotiations more than two years ago. The public opinion within the EU member-states is continuously perceived as a factor that can potentially block Turkey’s membership and the discussion of alternatives to full-fledged membership is still an open question on the agenda of the European public debate.
As a new member of the European Union Bulgaria faces the responsibility to contribute to the European debate on further enlargement and formulate a clear stand on Turkey’s EU accession. The sharing of a common border with Turkey, as well as the existence of a Turkish ethnic minority with a political representation of key importance in Bulgaria, adds up to the growing significance of this debate to the Bulgarian public.
In order to contribute to an informed public debate on the topic, the Open Society Institute- Sofia is organizing an international conference to provide forum for open discussion on the perspectives and implications deriving from possible accession and non-accession scenarios for Turkey and the EU.
PROGRAM
First day, April 19 (Saturday), 2008
“Sofia” hall, Grand Hotel Sofia
Registration of participants: 9:30 – 10:00
Official opening and address
10:00 – 10:30
Georgi Stoytchev
Executive Director, Open Society Institute- Sofia
Gergana Grancharova
Minister of European Affairs of the Republic of Bulgaria
First panel: Turkey’s EU Accession Process – Perspectives and Risks
10:30 - 13:00
Within this panel the perspectives for Turkey’s EU accession, as well as the risks to blocking Turkey’s full-fledged membership prospect will be analysed. The discussion will focus on the dynamics of public opinion and the political processes within the member-states and in Turkey.
Turkish EU-Membership Outlook:
Charles Jenkins
Director, Western Europe, Country Analysis, Economist Intelligence Unit, United Kingdom
Chair of the panel
Public Opinion in Member States as a Risk Factor to Turkey’s EU Membership
Dr. Angelos Giannakopoulos
Scientific Researcher, University of Konstanz, Germany
Other Risk Factors – Dimensions of EU’s Integration Capacity
Prof. Dr. Jean Marcou
Researcher at the French Institute of Anatolian Studies – Istanbul – Turkey
Coffee break
11:15 – 11:30
Turkish bureaucratic and public attitudes on accession to the EU
Prof. Dr. Kemal Kirisci
Department of Political Sciences, Boğaziçi University, Istanbul
Discussant:
Antoinette Primatarova
Program Director, Center for Liberal Strategies, Sofia
Questions and Answers Session
13:00 – 14:30
Lunch buffet
Second panel: The Alternatives to Membership – Dimensions and Possible Implications
14:30 - 17:00
The goal of this panel’s discussion will be to provide a review of alternative scenarios for Turkey’s developments against the possibility for denial of full-fledged EU membership. The feasibility of such alternatives will be analysed, as well as their possible impact on the EU and on Turkey’s broad neighbourhood.
Review of the possible alternatives:
Prof. William Hale
Sabanci University, Istanbul Turkey
Chair of the panel
Alternatives to Full-fledged Membership – the Viewpoint of EU Member-States
Prof. Dr. Claus Leggewie
Director, Kulturwissenschaftliches Institut, Essen, Germany
The Alternatives to EU-Membership - An Outlook from Turkey
Prof. Sinan Ülgen
Chairman, Centre for Economic and Foreign Policy Studies (EDAM), Istanbul
Coffee break
15:15 – 15:30
The Alternatives to EU-Membership and Effects on Transatlantic Relations – a View from Central Europe
David Král
President, EUROPEUM Institute for European Policy, Prague
The Alternatives to EU-Membership and Their Global Effects
Dr. Ömer Taşpinar
Director of the Turkey Programme at the Brookings Institution, Washington
Discussant
Alexander Vezenkov
Freelance scholar, Sofia
Questions and Answers Session and closing of the first conference day
Second day, April 20 (Sunday), 2008
“Sofia” hall, Grand Hotel Sofia
Third panel: the Bulgarian Debate on Turkey’s EU Membership and possible Dimensions of the Bulgarian Position
10:00 – 13:00
The goal of this panel discussion is to present the state of the Bulgarian debate on Turkey’s EU membership, as well as to articulate the diverging viewpoints in the process of shaping the Bulgarian position. The debate is in the context of the assessment of possible impacts of membership and non-membership scenarios on Bulgaria and its neighbourhood.
Introduction to the Bulgarian Debate
Elitsa Markova
Open Society Institute- Sofia
Chair of the panel
The State of the Bulgarian Debate on Turkey’s EU Membership – Presentation OSI- S Key Findings
Marin Lessenski
Open Society Institute- Sofia
Possible Dimensions of the Bulgarian Stand – Viewpoints
Prof. Bozhidar Dimitrov*
Director, National Museum of History, Sofia
Coffee break
10:45 – 11:00
Prof. Ognyan Minchev
European Council on Foreign Relations, Sofia
Ivan Krastev
Director, Center for Liberal Strategies, Sofia
Ivo Prokopiev
Chairman of the Confederation of Employers and Industrialists, Sofia
Sevda Shishmanova
Foreign Affairs Correspondent, Bulgarian National Television, Sofia
Questions and Answers Session and Closing Remarks
13:00 – 14:30
Lunch buffet
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