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Four EU Members Oppose Turkey’s Accession
(Angus Reid Global Monitor) - People in four countries belonging to the European Union (EU) oppose Turkey's potential entry, according to a poll by Harris Interactive published in the Financial Times. 71 per cent of respondents in France, 66 per cent in Germany, and 55 per cent in Italy believe Turkey should not be invited to join the continental group.
Opposition to Turkey's eventual accession reaches 46 per cent in both Britain and Spain, and 13 per cent in the United States.
In January, Romania and Bulgaria became the last two countries to join the EU. In October 2005, Croatia and Turkey began accession talks, but neither country has been confirmed as an official future member. At least 40 per cent of respondents in the five EU countries surveyed oppose a further enlargement of the 27-member group.
On Jun. 13, Italian foreign minister Massimo D'Alema expressed Italy's support for Turkey's bid to join the EU during a meeting with Turkish prime minister Recep Tayip Erdogan in Ankara. D'Alema declared: "I am convinced that the best way to avoid that in this country an Islamism which is foreign to the tradition of modern Turkey prevails or that an anti-European, regressive nationalism takes hold, is for Europe to open up to Turkey. (...) We are here to convey a message to all political forces and most of all to the public opinion: dialogue must continue in view of a possible, if not upcoming, integration of Turkey in Europe."
Polling Data
Do you think that Turkey should be invited to join the European Union (EU)?
BRI | FRA | ITA | ESP | GER | USA | |
Yes | 23% | 16% | 31% | 26% | 21% | 32% |
No | 46% | 71% | 55% | 46% | 66% | 13% |
Not sure | 31% | 13% | 14% | 28% | 13% | 55% |
Do you think the European Union (EU) should continue to take in new member countries?
BRI | FRA | ITA | ESP | GER | USA | |
Yes | 29% | 20% | 48% | 35% | 33% | 46% |
No | 47% | 67% | 41% | 40% | 55% | 5% |
Not sure | 23% | 13% | 11% | 25% | 12% | 49% |
Source: Harris Interactive / Financial Times
Methodology: Online interviews with 6,169 adults in Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United States, conducted from May 31 to Jun. 12, 2007. Margin of error for individual countries is 3 per cent.