TURKEY - EU CHRONOLOGY31 July 1959: Republic of Turkey applied to the European Economic Community (EEC) for partnership.
12 September 1963: Ankara Treaty was signed.
1 December 1964: Ankara Treaty went in effect.
9 December 1968: Negotiations started for Additional Protocol
23 November 1970: Additional Protocol was signed.
13 January 1972: Turkey – EEC negotiations started.
1 January 1973: Additional Protocol went in effect.
20 July 1974: Cyprus Peace Operation was started.
1978: European Community recommended that Turkey and Greece should apply for membership at the same time. Turkey rejected this recommendation.
12 September 1980: Military coup was carried out.
22 January 1982: European Community decided to freeze the relations with Turkey after the 1980 military coup.
1983: Independent North Cyprus Turkish Republic was established. Parliament elections was carried out in Turkey and military governance ended.
14 April 1987: Turkey applied to Association Council for full membership to the European Communities.
27 April 1987: Turkey’s demand for full membership to the Community was referred to the Commission to be analyzed by the “Community Council of Ministers
18 December 1989: European Commission disapprove Turkey’s application for membership.
1 January 1996: From this date on, the “Last Period” started with the Customs Union for full membership.
12–13 December 1997: In the European Union Summit at Luxembourg, the Czech Republic , Slovak Republic, Hungary, Poland, Slovenia, Romania, Bulgaria, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia and Greek Cypriot Administration of Southern Cyprus were listed as candidate countries for full membership; but Turkey was only approved to be capable for full membership.
3 March 1999: “European Strategy for Turkey” ,a documentation aiming to improve the Turkey-European Union Affairs, was declared by the European Union Commission of Turkey.
4 November 1999: “Progress Report” was published which was prepared by the European Union Commission and in which the opinions of the Commission were present on the basis of Copenhagen Criteria.
28 February 1999: Third of the meetings to actualize the “European Strategy for Turkey” was carried out in Bonn.
13 October 1999: The second Progress Report was published.
11–12 December 1999: European Council Summit Meeting was carried out at Helsinki, in which Turkey was acknowledged to have the status of a candidate country.
13 October 2000: Third Progress Report for Turkey was declared by the European Commission.
8 March 2001: Council of European Union took the decision of Turkey’s Accession Partnership.
13 November 2001: Fourth Progress Report was published.
19 February 2002: First Harmonization Package came into force which predicts innovations in the Turkish Criminal Law, fight against terrorism, the law on SSC.
9 April 2002: Second Harmonization Package came into force which was prepared for harmonization to the political Copenhagen Criteria and which brings about legal changes in the acts for associations, political parties and press.
3 August 2002: Third Harmonization Package came into force. In accordance with the accepted act:
• Death penalty was abrogated excluding “war and threats for war”,
• Publications and broadcasting in different mother tongues including Kurdish was allowed,
• Education in mother tongue was allowed,
• The right to buy real estate was given to minorities.
19 July 2003: Sixth Harmonization Package came into force which prepared for harmonization with the Copenhagen Criteria and which predicts changes in different acts.
7 August 2003: Seventh Harmonization Package came into force which prepared for harmonization with the Copenhagen Criteria and which predicts changes in different acts.
5 November 2003: Turkey’s 2003 Progress Report and Strategy Document were published by the EU Commission, which included political, economic and Acquis harmonization criteria.
17–18 June 2004: It was declared that accession negotiations would be started if Turkey fulfilled the political Copenhagen criteria.
6 October 2004: 2004 Turkey Progress Report was published by the European Commission. In the Report, it was stated that Turkey was performing well in the implementation of political Copenhagen criteria, and it was recommended that accession negotiations should be started.
16–17 December 2004: In the Summit of Heads of State and Government of the Council of Europe, it was decided that Turkey was fulfilling the political Copenhagen criteria to a large scale and that the negotiations should be started on the 3th of October 2005.
30 July 2005: “Additional Protocol” of the 1963 Ankara Treaty, which comprises the foundation of the Turkey – European Union, was signed on the 1st of May 2004. But a declaration was published stating that Turkey’s signing under this Protocol does not mean that it recognizes the Greek Cypriot Administration of Southern Cyprus.
21 September 2005: In an averse declaration published by the European Union, it was emphasized that Turkey should recognize Cyprus during the negotiations and let it’s harbors and airports to the Greeks.
3 October 2005: EU General Affairs and Foreign Affairs Council affirmed the Turkey – EU document for the membership negotiations in December 2004.
20 January 2006: Turkey presented it’s new plan for the solution of the Cyprus issue to the Secretary-General of United Nations Kofi Annan. In the plan, it was demanded that if Turkey opens it’s harbors to Greeks, the isolations on Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus must be removed.
12 April 2006: Foreign Minister Abdullah Gül declared the 9th Reform Package which included the points as below;
• Scheme for Public Auditing Institution,
• Stage legislation for a change in the Court of Accounts law,
• Stage legislation for a change in the private education law,
• Foundations law,
• Scheme for settlement law,
• Scheme for administrative procedure law,
• Scheme for the foundation of a political ethic commission,
• Stage legislation for the finance of political parties,
• Administrative arrangements for changes in the foundation of military courts and jurisdiction procedures law.
20 September 2006: Turkey’s Progress Report was postponed to the 8th of November by the European Commission.
8 November 2006: It was confirmed that Turkey did not open it’s harbors and airports to the Greek Cypriot Administration of Southern Cyprus despite the Additional Protocol and Turkey was given time until the 14-15th of December.
28 November 2006: EU Term President Finland, declared that the Cyprus-oriented negotiations were not successful.
29 November 2006: EU Commission emphasized the fact that as long as Turkey does not open it’s harbors to Greeks, any of the negotiations would be closed and 8 negotiation topics would not be evaluated which are;
• Free flow of goods,
• Right of settlement and production of services,
• Financial services,
• Agriculture and Rural development,
• Fishery,
• Transportation policy,
• Customs union,
• External relations.
1 January 2007: Rumania and Bulgaria were officially members of the European Union.
1 Temmuz 2007: Portugal undertook the Term Presidency of EU.
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