Rethinking Conditionality: Turkey’s EU Accession and the Kurdish Question

32 Pages Posted: 12 Mar 2012 Last revised: 13 Sep 2012

See all articles by Firat Cengiz

Firat Cengiz

University of Liverpool, School of Law

Lars Hoffmann

Maastricht University

Date Written: March 12, 2012

Abstract

In this paper we look at the Turkish reform process with regard to the Kurdish minority from the perspective of Europeanization and in the light of the external incentives model. As a result, the paper provides a systematic analysis of recent political developments in this area. Additionally, our analysis leads to the questioning of some basic premises of the external incentives model. Most notably in this specific case we find that credible EU commitment, rather than low adoption costs and weak veto players, has constituted a necessary and sufficient condition for the reform process. Likewise, we find a dynamic relationship between EU induced democratic reforms and adoption costs that is largely overlooked in the model.

Keywords: Europeanization, EU enlargement, external Incentives, conditionality, Turkish-EU relations, Kurdish conflict

JEL Classification: D78, H11, K20, K44, K49

Suggested Citation

Cengiz, Firat and Hoffmann, Lars, Rethinking Conditionality: Turkey’s EU Accession and the Kurdish Question (March 12, 2012). TILEC Discussion Paper No. 2012-010, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2020197 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2020197

Firat Cengiz (Contact Author)

University of Liverpool, School of Law ( email )

Brownlow Hill
Liverpool, L69 3BX
United Kingdom

Lars Hoffmann

Maastricht University ( email )

P.O. Box 616
Maastricht, Limburg 6200MD
Netherlands

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