Taking Stock of Sixty Years of Association Law between the European Union and Türkiye: Case Law Reaching Its Limits and the Imperative for Normative Actions

Sixty years have passed since the entry into force of the Ankara Agreement, which established an association between the European Union (EU) and Türkiye. Broadly speaking, during the first half of this period, the Parties established the current normative framework of the association, comprising primarily the Ankara Agreement itself, its Additional Protocol (1970), and several Association Council Decisions, particularly Nos. 1/80, 3/80, and 1/95. In the latter half, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) emerged as a pivotal actor through its rulings, which clarified that the instruments of association law form part of EU law, benefiting especially from the principles of direct effect and primacy. Today, it is evident that the CJEU has almost reached the limits of judicial interpretation. Both case law and policy papers underscore the pressing need for normative actions to revise and enhance the current framework. Against this backdrop, this manuscript aims to review sixty years of EU–Türkiye association law, focusing on its norm-making and judicial interpretation. It addresses the questions: How far has CJEU case law progressed, and how can normative actions resolve the remaining challenges?