During its General Assembly on 1st March 2002 in Brussels, the European Parliament (EP) passed by a wide majority the Caucasus Report. Recalling a previous 1987 EP decision, which recognized the Armenian genocide and called upon Turkey to recognize it as well, the new decision says that Turkey should take a compromising stance. The Caucasus Report says that Turkey is a threat to the independence of Armenia.

On the same day the EP passed by a wide margin a report on "Human Rights in Turkey". In the report, the EP expressed its opposition to investigations into the Peoples' Democracy Party (HADEP), saying: "HADEP has struggled for Kurdish civil rights in Turkey and it refuses to be linked with the PKK and other terrorist organizations". The report underlined that Turkey could advance in its EU membership process only if it respects basic human rights and fully implements the Copenhagen criteria.