The man who wants Muslims out of Europe.

last updated 8 January 2015

Turkey

Mehmet Ali BrandTurkish Daily News

Turkey just got a new enemy, said Mehmet Ali Brand in Ankara’s Turkish Daily News. French President–elect Nicolas Sarkozy already has one crystal–clear policy: “to keep Turkey out of Europe.” Sarkozy says Turkey is clearly an Asian country with cultural and religious ties to the Middle East, and that it therefore has no place in the European Union. “No other European leader has been so unambiguous” in opposing Turkey’s candidacy for E.U. membership. It’s plain that Sarkozy sees Muslims as fundamentally un–European. He has criticized his country’s own Muslim citizens for failing to assimilate, saying, in essence, “Whoever doesn’t love France can leave it.” Such a vocal and powerful opponent will hurt the European cause in Turkey. Those here who already doubt the wisdom of joining the E.U. will simply say the cause is hopeless and should be dropped. We can’t let that happen. “Sarkozy can’t decide whether Turkey is European or not.” Only we Turks can—by enacting the judicial and political reforms that would bring us up to E.U. norms. That job is now “harder, but it won’t be impossible.”