ABSTRACT
The Helsinki decision of the European Council declaring Turkey as a candidate country 'destined to join the European Union (EU) on the basis of the same criteria as applied to the other candidate States' was a watershed in Turkey–EU relations. The European Council meeting in Helsinki declared Turkey as 'a candidate State destined to join the Union on the basis of the same criteria as applied to the other candidate States'. The EU perspective provided an external incentive for reform in Turkey owing to the necessity of fulfilling the political aspects of the Copenhagen criteria. The Cyprus issue was of course only the tip of the iceberg with regard to understanding the obstacles in the way of Turkey's EU membership. As Turkey faced serious problems in terms of its adherence to EU norms and principles, the 'Armenian genocide' debate also created renewed pressure on the country's attempt at EU membership.
