Department of International Relations
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Browsing Department of International Relations by Author "Aydinli, E."
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Item Open Access Assessing violent nonstate actorness in global politics: a framework for analysis(Routledge, 2015) Aydinli, E.This article begins with the assumption that the most important shift that is taking place in contemporary global politics is the shift in polity power from the predominance of the state to the rising importance of nonstate actors. It goes on to argue that disciplinary understandings of this shift and, in particular, the nature of the actors driving it, remain dispersed. This article aims, therefore, to provide a framework for evaluating the global political potential—or actorness—of one type of nonstate actor, the violent nonstate actor, positing it as that most overtly challenging states' authority, and therefore with the potential to play a uniquely stimulating role in the shifting of power. Based on three principles of autonomy, representation and influence, the framework provides broad criteria for understanding violent nonstate actors, as well as a means for evaluating violent nonstate actorness and for exploring its potential in global politics.Item Open Access Before jihadists there were anarchists: a failed case of transnational violence(Taylor & Francis Inc., 2008) Aydinli, E.With the wave of violent jihadist activities in recent years, the world's attention has shifted away from a traditional prioritizing of state forms of formal violence toward one focusing on an apparently "new" phenomenon of transnational violence. Yet transnational violence itself is not a new phenomenon; it in fact precedes international, state-centric violence. For reasons related to gaps or defects within the state system or to surges in the capacities of individuals and societies, transnational violence has periodically made attempts to regain its primary position. Prior to the violent jihadists, the last of these efforts was that of the late-nineteenth-century Anarchists. This article looks at the dynamics of the Anarchists's failure as part of a transnational violence continuum, using a framework based on their autonomy, representation, and influence. The results provide an historical example against which future studies about the current episode of transnational violence may be compared.Item Open Access Between security and liberalization: decoding Turkey's struggle with the PKK(Sage Publications Ltd., 2002) Aydinli, E.This article identifies the dynamics of the national security syndrome and the pendulum swing between security and liberalization that are embedded in the Turkish political system. It then explores how these are reflected in the problematic and conflictual processes of Turkish policy formulation with regard to the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) in the post-violence era. The article presents evidence of a new impasse surrounding Turkey's southeast/Kurdish question. While Turkey is having difficulties in designing post-terror policies, the PKK appears unprepared to fully disarm and give up. The only route remaining seems to be one of political struggle. After identifying Turkey's structural limits to addressing the issue, the article discusses the implications of these on the future of the conflict, on Turkey's foreign relations with the West, and on the increasingly torn domestic political situation.Item Open Access The conflict resolution and counterterrorism dilemma: Turkey faces its Kurdish question(Taylor & Francis, 2011) Aydinli, E.; Ozcan, N. A.This article considers the relationship between two processes-conflict resolution and counterterrorism-which conceptually share many common points, yet in practice do not necessarily proceed together easily towards a common goal. Considering particular cases of ethnic conflict in which terrorist factions exist, the article argues that while neither conflict resolution nor counterterrorism alone can adequately address the problem, simultaneously conducting both must keep in mind the processes' inherent differences and avoid excessive prioritizing of one over the other. By exploring recent Turkish governmental initiatives to address the Kurdish question, the article attempts to provide an outline for how to successfully cope with the two processes simultaneously.Item Open Access Ergenekon, new pacts, and the decline of the Turkish "Inner State"(Routledge, 2011-06) Aydinli, E.This article looks at both the direct question of the Turkish military's changing role in Turkish politics as specifically reflected in its reaction to the Ergenekon investigation, and more broadly at the recent face of pact-making in Turkey. It explores the nature of current pacts with respect to Turkish civil-military relations, and questions whether these pacts may actually be evidence of a deeper consolidation of Turkish democracy and the emergence of a new Turkish State.Item Open Access From finances to transnational mobility: searching for the global Jihadists' achilles heel(Routledge, 2006) Aydinli, E.This article seeks to uncover a primary source of vulnerability in the global Jihadist terrorist network. It offers a critical examination of the traditional money lead for countering global Jihadist terrorism, and concludes that in this case, it is not the most effective method. Rather, the concept of transnational mobility, both as it relates to socialization into and professionalization within the Jihadist network, is identified as the lifeblood of the network, and thus an arguably more appropriate focus for countering strategies. Issues surrounding travel document security are analysed within an overarching dichotomous framework of offensive/defensive counter-terrorism strategies, emphasizing the need for active penetration by intelligence forces into the terrorist networks and relevant mobility-related realms.Item Open Access Governments vs states: decoding dual governance in the developing world(Routledge, 2010) Aydinli, E.This article begins by questioning the transferability of Western conceptualisations of the 'state' to the developing world, particularly to those areas in which security concerns are extreme. It proposes that the complicated relationship between security and political liberalisation produces a reform- security dilemma, which in turn may result in dual-governance structures consisting of an autonomous 'state' bureaucracy and a relatively newer, political 'government'. The dynamics of such a duality are explored through a longitudinal comparison of two critical cases: Iran and Turkey. Both cases reveal evidence of the 'state' and 'government' as distinct bodies, emerging over time in response to conflicting pressures for security and liberalisation. While the Iranian case remains entrenched in a static duality with an advantaged 'state', the Turkish case provides optimism that, under certain conditions, an eventual subordination of the state to the political government can take place.Item Open Access Looking towards Europe(Royal Institute of International Affairs, 2002-10) Aydinli, E.; Usul, A. R.There has long been a sense of unreality about relations between Turkey and the European Union. While the Turks largely pretended that they would someday enter the Union, the Europeans pretended that they would allow it to happen. Since it was agreed that such a process would require a great deal of time and major changes, both sides were able to avoid the issue. Europeans could avoid truly serious thinking about Turkish membership, believing Türkey would never be able to meet all the necessary requirements. Many Turks avoided thinking about the realities of membership, suspecting the Europeans would never allow it to come true.Item Open Access A paradigmatic shift for the Turkish generals and an end to the Coup era in Turkey(Middle East Institute, 2009) Aydinli, E.Turkey has been undergoing major democratic transformations in recent years, but one issue remains in question: the role of the military. Have these democratic changes also included an irreversible, structural change for the Turkish military's political role? Are the Turks reconceptualizing their special bond with the armed forces and most importantly, is the military leadership ready to go along with this paradigm shift? This article first provides a typology of civil-military relations worldwide and identifies the main parameters of traditional Turkish civil-military relations as a system in which society maintains a direct, special bond with its military, keeping politics and politicians in a secondary position. It then suggests that this pattern is shifting into a more democratic one, in which society places its trust in politics, thus forcing the military into the secondary position. It then analyzes the discourse and policies of the last three Turkish Chiefs of Staff for evidence that the army is adapting into this paradigm shift. With the completion of this adaptation, Turkey may very well be leaving the coup era behind.Item Open Access Quantifying intelligence cooperation: The United States International Intelligence Behavior (USIIB) dataset(SAGE Publications, 2011-09-22) Aydinli, E.; Tuzuner, M.This report describes the creation of the United States International Intelligence Behavior dataset (USIIB). The USIIB represents the first collection of event data specifically intended for exploring in a quantifiable manner the international intelligence cooperation behaviors of the United States. A total of 293,615 events are recorded in the USIIB, covering the years 2000–09. The report first provides a detailed description of the steps involved in building such a dataset, including the development of search terms, the use of a machine coding program (TABARI – Text Analysis by Augmenting Replacement Instructions) to extract data from wire news releases, and the extension of an existing coding scheme (CAMEO) to include intelligence behaviors. Following a discussion of issues related to the reliability and validity of event datasets in general and the USIIB in particular, the report then includes suggestions and examples for how the data in the current USIIB dataset may be used in order to add to our understandings of patterns and anomalies in international intelligence cooperation behavior. As a specific example, it offers results from an empirical test exploring variation in intelligence cooperation behaviors among democracies and non-democracies, asking specifically whether the United States has been more likely in the early 21st century to cooperate on intelligence matters with democratic states, and finding this not to have been the case. Finally, it aims to provide a guide for others who would like to extend this dataset to explore intelligence cooperation activity of other countries or regions.Item Open Access The reform-security dilemma in democratic transitions: the Turkish experience as model?(Routledge, 2013) Aydinli, E.In considering the future of budding Middle Eastern democracies, past experience and scholarship show that a possible outcome for even the most "successful" ones is some form of imperfect democracy. Based within the literature on democratic transitions and hybrid regimes, this article explores possible factors leading to such outcomes. It focuses in particular on reform/security dilemmas, and the resulting evolution of dual state structures, in which an unelected and often authoritarian state establishment coexists with democratic institutions and practices, for example, in countries like Russia, Iran, or Pakistan. Much of the literature views such duality as an impasse, and thus considers these countries as trapped within this "hybridness" - discouraging news both for currently defined "hybrid regimes" and for countries like Egypt and Tunisia, which are now launching democratization processes. To better understand the nature and evolution of such regimes, this article looks at the case of Turkey, first tracing the rise and consolidation of the Turkish inner state, generally equated with the Turkish armed forces. It then looks at the apparent diminishing and integration of the inner state through pacts and coalitions among both civilian and military elements, and calls into question whether the pessimistic view of permanent illiberalness is inevitable. © 2013 © 2013 Taylor & Francis.Item Open Access The Turkish military's march toward Europe(Council on Foreign Relations, Inc., 2006) Aydinli, E.; Ozcan, N. A.; Akyaz, D.Turkey’s accession to the European Union has long been an issue of great debate. Some have questioned the EU’s willingness to welcome such a large, poor, and culturally distant country as a member; others have wondered whether Turkey can transform itself enough to meet the EU’s demands. Yet much of this talk has overlooked the Turkish army, even though it is a key player in the process thanks to its critical role in founding modern Turkey, its continued popularity within Turkish society, and its uniquely powerful voice in politics. None of the reforms the EU still requires of the Turkish government can be achieved without the military’s backing. Recent changes have already dramatically curbed the power of the Turkish military in several of its traditional areas of influence and reduced its long-standing authority in some civilian institutions. Not all of these adjustments have been greeted with open arms, but the Turkish General Staff (TGS) has largely complied with the EU’s demands even though doing so has forced it to let go of power it had felt necessary to build up and carefully guard for decades.