Ministry of European Union Affairs (Turkey) explained

Agency Name:Ministry of European Union Affairs
Native Name:Avrupa Birliği Bakanlığı
Preceding1:General Secretariat of the European Union
Dissolved:July 10, 2018
Superseding1:Directorate for EU Affairs
Jurisdiction:Government of Turkey
Budget:₺291,238,000 (2015)[1]

The Ministry of European Union Affairs (Turkish: Avrupa Birliği Bakanlığı) was a ministry of the Turkish government responsible for the accession process between the Republic of Turkey and the European Union. Formed on June 29, 2011 after Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan won a third term in the 2011 general election. The ministry was responsible for co-ordinating negotiations and accession projects throughout the 81 provinces of Turkey to develop relations between Turkey and the European Union. The minister responsible concurrently served as the chief negotiator during the accession process. The Minister concurrently served as the chief negotiator during accession talks with the EU.

History

The ministry was established after the governing Justice and Development Party won a third term in the general election of 2011, in time for the 61st government of Turkey. Previously, European Union negotiations were handled by the Minister of Foreign Affairs.[2]

The ministry has been headed by six ministers in the past, namely Egemen Bağış (2011–2013), Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu (2013–2014), Volkan Bozkır (2014 – August 2015 and again from November 2015 to 2016), Ali Haydar Konca (August–September 2015), Beril Dedeoğlu (September–November 2015) and Ömer Çelik, in office from 24 May 2016 onwards.[3]

Following the declaration of the new government after the presidential election in 2018, the ministry was dissolved, and it was replaced by the Directorate for EU Affairs, a sub-unit of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Organisation

The Ministry of European Union Affairs operated the following 16 directorates in 2015:[4]

DirectorateAdministration
Management Position
Directorate for Political AffairsEge ErkoçakDirector
Directorate for Accession PolicyElif KurşunluDirector
Directorate of Sectoral PoliciesAylin Çağlayan ÖzcanDirector
Directorate of Social, Regional and Innovative PoliciesKayhan ÖzümDirector
Directorate of Economic and Financial PoliciesAylin SakızlıoğluDirector
Directorate of Single Market and CompetitionLale ÇelikDirector
Directorate of Agriculture and FisheriesGökhan AralanDirector
Directorate of Financial CooperationBeyza TuranDirector
Directorate of Civil Society, Communication and CultureAnıl TurpçuDirector
Directorate of Project ImplementationBülent ÖzcanDirector
Directorate of European Union LawÖzlen Üstün KavalalıDirector
Directorate of Translation Coordinationİlksen Hilâl TanrıkurtDirector
Directorate of Training and Institution BuildingOsman DüzelDirector
Directorate of Research and DocumentationSelçuk BayraktaroğluDirector
Directorate of Administrative ServicesMehmet Nuri Erikel
İhsan Kaan Erkman
Mustafa Yılmaz
Director
Head of Department
Head of Department
Department of Strategic DevelopmentBengül GökcanHead of Department

List of ministers of European Union affairs

Between 2011 and 2018, six Ministers were responsible for this department.

Notes

  1. Web site: Bütçede aslan payını Maliye Bakanlığı aldı. https://web.archive.org/web/20150305101046/http://www.hurriyet.com.tr/ekonomi/27371830.asp. 2015-03-05.
  2. Web site: Avrupa Birliği Bakanlığı kuruldu-Ekonomi Haberleri – Zaman Gazetesi . 2015-07-22 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20150722201336/http://www.zaman.com.tr/ekonomi_avrupa-birligi-bakanligi-kuruldu_1144534.html . 2015-07-22 .
  3. Web site: MINISTRY FOR EU AFFAIRS – Republic of Turkey . 2016-10-22 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20150706155001/http://www.abgs.gov.tr/index.php?p=1&l=2 . 2015-07-06 .
  4. Web site: Ministry for Eu Affairs . 2015-03-23 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20150327013649/http://www.abgs.gov.tr/index.php?p=43126&l=2 . 2015-03-27 .