ABSTRACT
Turkey has always had rivals in its relations with the EU. It competed with some of them for membership of the Union, and with the others for whom membership was not possible technically, in achieving other benefits the Union could provide. Although Turkey had been one of the first two countries (the other being Greece) who established a contractual relationship with the EEC by means of an association agreement offering an outlook for full membership, all those in the membership race breasted the tape before Turkey, while Turkey is still running. Similarly, the rivals in non-membership benefits got more than Turkey did in most cases.
