{"id":1136242,"date":"2026-08-07T17:23:27","date_gmt":"2026-08-07T17:23:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/1136242\/"},"modified":"2026-08-07T17:23:27","modified_gmt":"2026-08-07T17:23:27","slug":"europes-crossroads-brexit-turkeys-identity-and-eu-reform","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/1136242\/","title":{"rendered":"Europe\u2019s crossroads: Brexit, Turkey\u2019s identity and EU reform"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Pulling together<\/strong><br \/>UK \u2014 Politics<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Britain\u2019s decision to leave the EU has delivered the greatest blow to the bloc since it began life as the European Coal and Steel Community in the 1950s. But as the shock of Brexit recedes and the UK\u2019s new prime minister, Theresa May, prepares to tackle exit negotiations, the remaining 27 heads of government must face up to a number of challenges when they meet in Bratislava on 16 September if the EU is to prevent further splintering.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\" id=\"h-on-the-agenda\"><strong>On the agenda<\/strong><\/p>\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li class=\"wp-block-list-item\"><strong>Reform the asylum system<\/strong><br \/>Refugees and migrants are still in dire conditions in Greece.<\/li>\n<li class=\"wp-block-list-item\"><strong>Resolve economic policy<\/strong><br \/>Disunity is holding up reform of the eurozone.<\/li>\n<li class=\"wp-block-list-item\"><strong>Reassert international role<\/strong><br \/>A strong foreign-policy initiative is needed.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Changing of the guard<\/strong><br \/>Turkey \u2014 Government<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Of all the mythology surrounding Turkey\u2019s War of Independence \u2013 which led to the foundation of the modern Turkish Republic in 1923 \u2013 there is one image enshrined in monuments: a woman selflessly carrying cannonballs to the frontline. \u201cSince Turkey\u2019s failed coup in July we\u2019re seeing similar images being projected, such as an obviously conservative woman who stood up to the tanks,\u201d says Burak Kadercan, assistant professor of strategy and policy at the United States Naval College. \u201cPresident Erdogan is using the coup attempt \u2013 which saw people take to the streets to resist the plotters \u2013 to reconstruct Turkey\u2019s national identity. He\u2019s called this a new War of Independence.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Much has changed in the weeks since July\u2019s failed coup, from the renaming of bridges to shifting foreign policy. But it has also shattered a foundational myth. For much of the 20th century the military was seen as a safeguard of the country\u2019s secular constitution but this recent coup attempt has seen it recast. State media now portrays it as a hive for rogue soldiers ready to shoot at civilians, a fifth column with allegiances to the exiled religious movement of Fethullah Gulen.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The army\u2019s influence has ebbed for decades. Turks are no strangers to the bloody and repressive reality of military rule, which was fresh in the minds of many of those who resisted the recent failed coup. Meanwhile, a decade of Erdogan\u2019s ruling party pruning dissenters has left the armed forces much altered.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The shift is telling of how Turkey\u2019s state narrative is also changing. During Istanbul\u2019s nightly demonstrations after the coup, the face of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the military hero who led the War of Independence, was absent. Ataturk is usually splashed across flags at nationalistic pageants yet songs and scarves of the Islamist ruling party dominated instead.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Ataturk flags did flutter at an opposition rally however, which brought together Turks from across the political spectrum. Perhaps the foundational story of Ataturk\u2019s secular army can no longer unite this divided nation. The new narrative \u2013 of civilians facing down tanks rather than bringing them shells for artillery \u2013 is the fulfilment of Erdogan\u2019s long-touted \u201cNew Turkey\u201d project, which is moving away from the interferences of the military and towards a one man show.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Green signal<\/strong><br \/>Poland \u2014 Transport<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A direct train service between Bialystok in eastern Poland and Kaunas, Lithuania\u2019s second-largest city, has been relaunched after it stopped running with the outbreak of the Second World War. \u201cThe connection is important in building good neighbourly relations,\u201d says Krzysztof Maminski, head of Polish rail carrier Przewozy Regionalne.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The new trains, made by Polish company Pesa, run on weekends, are bike-friendly and have big windows and air-conditioning. The route \u2013 which takes five hours to complete one way \u2013 will be part of the Rail Baltica line, which is set to link the three Baltic states to Poland from 2030.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Q&amp;A<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Miro Cerar<\/strong><br \/>Prime minister<br \/>Slovenia<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Slovenia marks 25 years of independence this year and of all the seven former Yugoslav republics the country stands out as an economic and social success. Former law professor Miro Cerar has been prime minister since 2014, after forming his own party: the SMC.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Why has your country been more successful than the other former Yugoslav states?<\/strong><br \/>We have always been very innovative, dedicated to work and willing to work together. We were quite successful within the former Yugoslavia and just continued with those processes in a new democratic environment. Our orientation towards the welfare state is essential for society to be successful within the European context.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>How will you make sure that Slovenia continues to be successful over the next 25 years?<\/strong><br \/>We must prove that the government is dedicated to the rule of law: no corruption, no bad practices. We need to raise optimism and trust in institutions and the government because when people trust their leaders they are much more committed to the country and the state \u2013 and to work.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Slovenia was the first of the former Yugoslav republics to join the EU. How does the UK\u2019s referendum result affect you?<\/strong><br \/>I really don\u2019t want the EU to disintegrate now; that would endanger peace in Europe. If we look back into European history we can see the alternative \u2013 and this alternative is very bad, frightening even.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Exchange rate<\/strong><br \/>Italy<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Italy\u2019s home office is asking towns to open their doors to refugees in exchange for cash. But only 10 per cent have done so despite a promise of 50 cents of each migrant\u2019s daily \u20ac2.50 allowance.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Images: Getty Images, STA<br \/>Infographic: Giacomo Gambineri<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Pulling togetherUK \u2014 Politics Britain\u2019s decision to leave the EU has delivered the greatest blow to the bloc&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1136243,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[5226],"tags":[802,748,2000,299,5187,1699,4884,308929,8536,13492,461,16,15],"class_list":["post-1136242","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-brexit","tag-brexit","tag-britain","tag-eu","tag-europe","tag-european","tag-european-union","tag-great-britain","tag-miro-cerar","tag-recep-tayyip-erdogan","tag-slovenia","tag-turkey","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/117055390087154748","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1136242","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1136242"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1136242\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1136243"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1136242"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1136242"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1136242"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}