The European Union was not supposed to become a society model. It has become so by virtue of international and domestic developments and also by the foresight of a number of European leaders.The Republic of Turkey has always wanted to be a part of all European, or Western, international organization since its inception. This had a two-fold motivation of a very old Ottoman diplomatic tradition to be present at relevant international platforms and, second, the essence of the Republic of Turkey was modernization seen as voluntary Westernization.This master plan has largely succeeded, as Turkey is a full member of all Western international organizations and systems. It is a founding member of the Council of Europe, it is a prominent member of NATO, and its only missing membership is that of the European Union. This has become over decades a kind of a quest for the Holy Grail for Turkish governments, institutions and intelligentsia.The European Union has developed into an institutional organization of virtuous principles. Of course there was always a distortion between what was professed at the theoretical level and what was implemented, but this dichotomy was never so great as to impede the persuasiveness of the EU. So highly praised are the values of the EU that our different prime ministers and relevant other ministers have repeatedly said that even if EU membership was not formally carried out for Turkey, EU principles would be turned into Ankara principles and still be implemented.Well, not only have these principles been largely forgotten in Turkey, but also in the EU, as cohesion and solidarity among member states are at a historical low. Great Britain has started almost a civil war within the EU, threatening other EU member states to leave if the accommodations it asks for are rejected. Within the Conservative government, the Tories are as divided as they have never been, perhaps except for the period before World War II. Greece is at odds with everybody and tries to better its untenable position by threatening to block any kind of arrangement, including any member state. Bulgaria and Romania remain the black sheep of the family, being members but treated as second-zone affiliates. Poland and Hungary have become the standard bearers of the revolt against Germany, especially regarding the migrant crisis.What is new is that the old Austro-Hungarian Empire provinces are uniting against the Prussian Kingdom. On Monday, Feb. 29, Austria reacted angrily to a statement from German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who had called on the European Union the day before not to abandon Greece to the migration crisis, as reported in Agence Europe. Vienna "does not need to be preached to," retorted Austrian Home Affairs Minister Johanna Mikl-Leitner. The Associated Press (AP) quoted her as saying: "Clearly, some people think that the ‹European solution› [to the migration crisis] is for everybody to end up in Austria." Together with Slovenia, Serbia and Macedonia, these countries have decided to stop migrants at the Macedonian border.This does not bode well for anybody. The EU, largely led by Germany, tries to settle its domestic strife, but some member states are willing to do this by disregarding all the EU's humane and essential values. In doing so, the EU is losing any legitimacy to reprimand Turkey, which has taken in 2.5 million refugees.This is a real pity because the EU membership objective, even when it looked the least attainable, served as a lighthouse in the darkness for Turks who wanted a democratic, free and law-abiding society. With the light of the lighthouse growing ever dimmer, references for a better Turkey are also disappearing. Who would want to become an EU member and have a democratic functioning as that of Bulgaria or Hungary? We already have it in Turkey, so why bothering becoming a member when nobody wants us in a club where rules are joyously put aside day after day?Shall we also follow the Austrian example and try to bring together ancient provinces of the Ottoman Empire to deal with the refugee problem? Is this the message Austria and its allies are sending to Turkey and to the world?