Turkey’s progress towards European Union membership and the internal political and rule of law situation

Abstract

This dissertation evaluates the political environment in Turkey by looking at the recent reforms which had an impact on the country’s rule of law. In order to do this, this dissertation takes into consideration several major events which have taken place in Turkey, such as the 2016 coup d’état and the 2017 referendum. This 2017 referendum is crucial as it provides a fundamental turning point in Turkish politics which was supposed to restore Turkey’s democratic legitimacy and make up for the failure it experienced in the past to gain EU membership. This thesis uses various primary and secondary sources such as official documents and scholarly articles from both Turkey and the EU to outline the latest events that strained the relationship between the two. The research question provides the answer with regards to whether or not the constitutional reforms within Turkey bids an obstacle to gain accession. Last but not least, a possibility of what the future holds is given if the relationship between both sides does not improve.