Irish President tells Turks an anecdote of myth not fact and some Turks already know it…

A while ago, in a mailing list, a friend excitedly send Drogheda FC’s logo and told the story. Someone searched about it and found that was a myth. Now here comes again:

President tells Turks an anecdote of myth not fact

Merkel to repeat offer to Turkey of EU “privileged partnership” – Monsters and Critics

Turkish protestors wave flags of Turkey during a demonstration in Stockholm March 21, 2010, in protest against a resolution passed by the Swedish Parliament in recognizing the 1915 killings of ethnic Armenians in Ottoman, Turkey as genocide. REUTERS/ Henrik Montgomery/Scanpix (SWEDEN –

The ?ghettoization? politics of the EU integration process by Erdoan A. Shipoli

Ever since I began to study international relations, I have been against all who considered the EU a Christian club. I was against such prejudice, as I used to call it, because the EU was such a good idea that I considered it to be the job of everyone, but especially those of us who deal with politics and academia, to support it.

Turning a Vicious Cycle Into a Virtuous One

EU Enlargement Commissioner Stefan Fule at a press conference with Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu.
AA Photo from Hurriyet Daily News

In his first trip to Turkey, EU Enlargement Commissioner Stefan Fule re-stated the European Union’s position on Cyprus, urging Turkey to implement the Additional Protocol of the EU Customs Union and so end the blockade of Turkish ports to Cyprus.

Auditing the Military

A subcommittee of the Parliamentary Planning and Budget Commission has begun debating a proposal to more fully audit the military and allow for the Court of Accounts to examine military spending. On March 10, representatives of the Turkish Armed Forces conveyed their opposition to the proposal in a formal report to the subcommittee. Today’s Zaman translates some of the TSK’s report:

ŞAHİN ALPAY – The ?Armenian problem,? intellectuals and politicians in Turkey

YAVUZ BAYDAR – Process (mis)management

Turkey hits US business after ‘genocide’ vote

Turkish envoy won’t return if U.S. labels Armenian deaths ‘genocide’ – washingtonpost.com

Bagis Talks to Der Spiegel

In an interview that has quite a lot to say about Minister for European Affairs and EU Chief Negotiator Egeman Bagis, the politician talks with a very aggressive interviewer from Der Spiegel. As expected and seen in prior interviews, Bagis affirms his country’s enthusiasm for EU membership and argues Turkey’s geostrategic importance for Europe (for my critique of this rhetoric, see Feb. 21 post).

More Resolutions, More Troubles

Three significant developments unfolded in the past two weeks in regard to Armenia. One, on March 12 the Swedish Riksdag voted by a margin of one vote to define the 1915 massacres of Armenians genocide in a non-binding resolution that the Swedish government has flatly denounced. Two, Obama Administration officials in the State Department have backed off affirmations that the genocide resolution passed in the House Foreign Affairs Committee will not come to a floor vote. Three, Prime Minister Erdogan, in an interview with BBC’s Turkish-language service, seemed to threaten to crack down on undocumented Armenians working in Turkey.