CLIFF-EDGE DIPLOMACY

By Ray Flaming l LET'S hope that yesterday afternoon's rescue act of the European Union's negotiations with Turkey for its EU membership will be accepted by Ankara. Frankly, it was disgraceful that the EU, having committed itself to starting negotiations almost a year ago, should have been forced into a cliff-edge drama at the last moment by the stubborness of Austria which stood alone among the 25 members of the EU in insisting that the terms of negotiation should include an option to offer Turkey something less than full membership. Austria must have known that other countries had reservations about bringing Turkey into the EU fold but had decided it would be better to let the negotiations go forward over a ten year period. If aspects of Turkey's governance show themselves to be incompatible with the EU's principles during the necessary very detailed discussions it will be time enough to question the validity of Turkey's application. It should not be judged in advance. Austria's stated reasons for objecting were not impressive, that if the EU cannot agree on a constitution or a budget it is not ready to approve the new membership of a country as big as Turkey. The real reasons are more likely to be found in Austria's historical hostility to the Ottoman Empire and in its internal politics. It has also argued that the negotiations for EU entry of its ally Croatia, currently suspended, should be resumed and the granting of this concession at yesterday's talks enabled Austria to withdraw its pre-conditions on the talks with Turkey. Jack Straw, the British Foreign Minister who has been in the chair for these tricky talks, will be relieved that it was possible to avoid slamming the door in Turkey's face. None the less it will not be surprising if the Turkish negotiators are deeply suspicious of the EU's good faith after this incident. No one thinks that the talks will be easy; the fact that Turkey will have to adopt about 80'000 pages of EU legislation before becoming a member gives an indication of just how complex the process will be.