Turkey EU screening this week

Turkey will undergo screening for EU accession chapters on social policy and employment this week amid an atmosphere of concern in Ankara that a political dimension will be introduced to chapters it considers to be technical.

Some EU members want a reference to the Copenhagen political criteria inserted into the chapter on education and culture.

This has sparking fears in Turkey that more will be demanded of it in the area of minority language and educational rights (particularly of Kurds), or that this will be used to block its accession progress.