European Politics and Institutions

The EPC’s first Head-to-Head debate saw British MEPs Graham Watson and Martin Callanan clash over Prime Minister David Cameron’s plans to renegotiate the UK’s EU membership and put the resulting settlement to a nationwide referendum.

Turkey remains committed to EU accession, and Brussels should take note of its efforts to fight terrorism and to promote peace and mutual understanding between all its citizens.

If Kosovo is to progress towards closer integration with the EU, then much will depend on the future of relations between Pristina and Belgrade.

Although the March 2013 EU summit was much less dramatic than previous ones, implementation of measures previously agreed remains patchy and concrete new initiatives, putting the long-term stability of the euro at risk.

Turkey’s Kurdish and PKK issues are inextricably linked. The recently-launched Imrali Process is likely to prove fragile, but it may at least have the potential to solve the Kurdish issue.

An independent Scotland would want to remain in the European Union but remain outside of areas of EU integration like the euro and Schengen – and keep its share of the UK’s budgetary rebate.

National leaders gathering at last week’s summit were at least able to reach agreement on the EU’s next budget. But with the European Parliament still needing to approve the deal, the final outcome remains uncertain.

Visa liberalisation is fast becoming the most sensitive issue in EU-Turkey relations, with lack of mutual trust a major stumbling block preventing progress on the issue.

Turkish-EU relations suffer from a lack of sincerity among key players on both sides. But with a renewed effort, the present impasse in the accession process can be overcome.

Completing a genuine Single Market could help the EU to produce much-needed economic growth.