Turks turn to EU with renewed enthusiasm
Public support for EU membership in Turkey has shot up from 45% to 53% in just one year, a new survey says.
The Turkish people’s support for European Union membership and approval of NATO have risen remarkably over the past year, according to the Transatlantic Trends survey of the Washington-based German Marshall Fund on Sept. 10.
The survey, conducted in Turkey, the United States, Russia and 10 EU countries in June, found that 49% of Turks believe “NATO is still essential to our country’s security” — a 10-point increase from 39% a year ago. Similarly, the proportion of Turks who believe “EU membership would be good for Turkey” increased by eight points over the past year, climbing to 53% from 45% in 2013.
The figures are striking and worth analyzing further, for they speak of an emerging popular resistance to the domestic and foreign policies of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), whose outcome after 12 years is now, without a shadow of doubt, a Turkey drifting away from its EU membership goal and the West in general.
The 2014 Transatlantic Trends Survey’s Turkey data is based on face-to-face interviews conducted June 2-18 with 1,007 people aged 18 and over, representative of Turkey’s urban and rural populace. Turkey became part of Transatlantic Trends in 2004, two years after the survey was launched in the United States and EU countries.
