He was in Turkey from Nov. 4 to 7 as part of European Youth Week, which took place with the participation of young people and professors across the European continent. He addressed the young participants about what he calls "European values."He emphasizes that European values are more important than the union itself and he claims that the whole continent is, indeed, composed of these values.
"European values are democracy, human rights, dialogue between religions and civilizations and solidarity. These are more important than the EU's economic aspects," he said. Noting that the union also supports the social aspects of Europeans' lives in education and other fields, Vedrine said the common bond of European nations is not simply the economy.
"There are many organizations across the continent, but people tend to reduce the continent to the EU. The Europe of the EU is a field of politicians," he further said.
He also said Europe can adopt either a model of the US -- a centralized Europe with each nation making their own legislation like American states -- or a model of Britain -- a non-centralized Europe in which the nations are all separate countries. Vedrine said he favors the model of the US, with unification but also allowing diversity.
"In the US, the laws in each state are different over issues such as education. In Europe, we can do the same," he noted, saying in an ironic way that if the continent is unified in every field, it may end up like the Soviet Union.
The professor also frequently emphasized "building Europe" and "understanding people," and said, "If you can understand people, building a model is not difficult."
Atatürk’s Turkey can be an EU state; economy doesn’t matter but religion does
When it comes to Turkey, Vedrine thinks that Europe does not have enough information about Turkey, which, in turn, causes a lack of communication and misunderstanding.
He added that Turkey has a good chance of becoming an EU member and said that economic problems and crises are not big obstacles for Turkey's EU bid.
"Some people have never come to Turkey, have never seen the people of Turkey, have never read the history of Turkey and have not even heard of Atatürk. For me, Atatürk's Turkey is always welcomed into the EU. The economic problems of Turkey are not the leading cause of the country not being accepted into the union. Romania and Bulgaria are poorer than Turkey in economic terms; however, they are members," he said.
Vedrine further emphasized that Turkey is a part of Europe, yet Turkey's EU bid does not realize this and this is a political problem.
Other than the economy being used to explain Turkey's non-membership of the union, Vedrine points out another issue: religion.
The EU comprises countries that have mostly Christian citizens, and in some countries, the force of religious groups is felt particularly strongly. Vedrine confirms what is uttered by some Turks and says Europe is not yet ready for Islamist integration. Stating that European states do not have a singular religion, he agrees with those who say it is not Turkey but Europe that does not accept other religions and the culture stemming from those religions. He noted: "Turkey seems to be open to other cultures. But Europe has seen the post-Sept. 11 face of Islam. That is most probably why they are not ready for Islamic integration."
However, he also highlights that accepting a state where the number of Muslims is overwhelmingly more than the number of others who have different religions or beliefs would be a huge step forward for Europeans. He also added that the Western perception that identifies Islam with terrorism is very wrong and that must be changed in some way, even though it is not easy to achieve and it will take time to solve.
"Many Europeans tend to associate Islam with violent action. We must say 'no' to this. Terrorism is not the problem of one religion. There are terrorist groups from other beliefs, too. We can write articles, hold conferences and somehow provide a basis for accomplishing inter-religious dialogue. Turkey's EU bid cannot be achieved if the religious questions of Europe are not answered by Turks," he noted, adding he is organizing a conference in Paris with the theme of inter-religious dialogue.
Vedrine further emphasized that taking Turkey into the EU would be a big step for the union and it would benefit from such cooperation. He also stated that accepting Turkey would be a good and peaceful message for the rest of the world.
He is also optimistic about the success of Turkey's EU bid and expresses the belief that Turkey will be an EU member within 10 years' time.
While Vedrine expresses his positive views on Turkey's EU bid, it is frequently voiced by the Turkish public and media that France is the leading country in the EU which does not want Turkey to join He has another explanation for this though: "Every politician should consider its electors." But he also thinks that the general opinion of electors may be changed by the Turkish people again.
‘Forget about calling the Balkans “problematic”’
As he had come to Turkey to speak about intercultural dialogue between European countries, he also talked about the Balkans. "The Balkans is always remembered as problematic. Please, forget about calling the Balkans 'problematic.' There are nations which deserve to be mentioned individually," Vedrine said about the Balkans.
Vedrine also says people tend to think about the Balkans pessimistically, highlighting that people must recognize the region as separate nations. He also thinks that their problems are caused by economic issues and that solving such problems will decrease tensions in the region.
He also says he sees the future of the whole of the Balkans in the EU. "They need a working market and good economies. They will solve the problems then. Why would they fight if they have good opportunities and jobs? They would not trade their jobs for wars," he said.
Call for Turkish universities
Vedrine also said he is preparing a double diploma program -- participants of the program study in two universities in the program and graduate from both in the end -- and he wants to cooperate with a Turkish university as well. He has set September 2009 as the starting date for the program and is negotiating with some other universities in the Caucasus. The program will cover international relations and will last for two years.
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