Avoiding the Issues

Angela Merkel's toned down stance on Turkey as federal chancellor is a logical consequence of her taking over the responsibility of leadership.

On her first trip to Turkey as head of the German government, Merkel decided not to pursue her previous course of pushing for a privileged partnership over full EU membership and, indeed, left the topic of EU entry off her agenda.

In fact, a day before her arrival, Sigmar Gabriel, Merkel's Social Democratic environment minister, told Ankara that the NATO state of Turkey was integral for the future peace and stability of Europe.

Despite this groundwork and diplomacy, Merkel did say that Turkey's slow progress towards EU membership would have the support of Germany as long as the country continued to develop in line with European standards.

And so the struggle for transparency in Germany's Turkey policy goes on. One must not forget that Merkel is the leader of the conservative Christian Democratic Union (CDU), a party largely critical of Turkey and one which is twinned with the even more critical Christian Social Union (CSU), the CDU's Bavarian sister party which is categorically against Turkey joining the EU. More and more leading conservative politicians are joining those who call for a suspension, if not an outright end, to accession negotiations with Turkey.

On the other hand, Merkel is the head of the government and she has the power to decide whether to put party interests aside in favor of political foresight. For Merkel to be seen to be supporting Turkey would help in the problems integrating Turks in Germany, while Turkey could call on its historical experiences to offer her advice in creating a dialogue between cultures and religions.

Merkel's trip to Turkey was the first by a Christian Democratic chancellor since Helmut Kohl visited 13 years ago, and she arrived at an unstable time for the country. Turkey is struggling with the problems surrounding secularism, the dangers of fundamentalism and the divide over whether to join the European Union.

During her 26-hour visit, Merkel was restricted in who she met with in Ankara and Istanbul. There were no representatives from civil society groups or women's organizations to offer information or criticism of Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, although she did get to meet with different religious representatives.

During the festival to mark the end of Ramadan, organized by the Istanbul faction of Erdogan's Justice and Development Party (AKP), the German contingent had limited access to President Ahmet Necdet Sezer. However, during their short discussion, Sezer criticized the leader of Erdogan's EU accession negotiation team, Ali Babacan, and rubbished the image of Turkey as a modern, secularized republic.

Those who support Erdogan -- but by no means the majority of people living in the land on the Bosporus -- have turned away from the contemporary western lifestyle and pluralistic democracy. It is no secret that Erdogan has his eye on the candidacy when parliament chooses a new president next April, and there's also the possibility that a female Turk in a headscarf could become the First Lady.

The bones of contention over Cyprus were carefully laid on the table during discussions. Erdogan confirmed that Turkey would continue not to recognize EU member Cyprus until customs rules on the Turkish north of the Mediterranean island are relaxed. A solution to the Cyprus problem which is satisfactory to both sides would ease one of the major headaches facing Germany as it prepares to take over the rotating EU presidency on January 1.

But despite some dialogue, there was little said on important subjects like the role of women in the state and society or the support of the integration process of Turks in Germany.

Baha Güngör is the head of DW-RADIO's Turkish department and an expert on Turkish affairs.