Browsing by Subject "Foreign Policy"

Now showing 1 - 7 of 7

Open Access
Constructing Turkish “exceptionalism”: Discourses of liminality and hybridity in post-Cold War Turkish foreign policy
(Elsevier, 2011-02) Yanık, L. K.
This article examines the discursive practices that enable the construction of Turkish “exceptionalism.” It argues that in an attempt to play the mediator/peacemaker role as an emerging power, the Turkish elite construct an “exceptionalist” identity that portrays Turkey in a liminal state. This liminality and thus the “exceptionalist” identity it creates, is rooted in the hybridization of Turkey’s geographical and historical characteristics. The Turkish foreign policy elite make every effort to underscore Turkey’s geography as a meeting place of different continents. Historically, there has also been an ongoing campaign to depict Turkey’s past as “multicultural” and multi-civilizational. These constructions of identity however, run counter to the Kemalist nation-building project, which is based on “purity” in contrast to “hybridity” both in terms of historiography and practice.
Open Access
The foreign policy of the Islamic Republic of Iran: prospects for change and continuity
(Center for Foreign Policy and Peace Research, İhsan Doğramacı Peace Foundation, 2019) Golmohammadi, Vali
Over the past four decades, there have been a variety of trends and developments in the foreign policy of the Islamic Republic of Iran. Within a framework of basic principles and fundamentals, the various administrations have shown different tactical behaviors in their approach to foreign policy. Conversely, despite critical shifts and developments in the domestic, regional, and international stages, some behaviors have basically remained unchanged. Since the 1979 revolution, despite major changes in the dynamics of domestic politics, structural developments in neighboring regions (especially the Middle East), and a shift in the global balance of power, Iranian foreign policy priorities have proven considerably consistent. Several Iranian administrations, from former presidents Hashemi Rafsanjani and Mohammad Khatami to current President Hassan Rouhani, have sought different approaches, but they have failed to adapt a new vision; the main pillars of Iran’s foreign policy—Pan-Islamist, Pan-Shia, anti-Western, anti-Imperialist, anti-Zionist and proResistance Front—have remained stable. Many scholars believe that Iranian foreign policy principles and practices have remained stable because they emphasize self-sufficiency, indigenization, exceptionalism, and resistance.1 Taken together, these principles intensify Iran’s isolation in the international arena. There are four key forces that illuminate the lack of dynamism in Iran’s foreign policy. First, in the foreign policy decision-making process, there is a constitutional mandate that gives power to the office of the Iran’s supreme leader, while limiting presidential power. The supreme leader emphasizes the preservation of the religious and ideological foundations of the 1979 revolution, while the president focuses on the country’s internal and executive affairs; the constitution limits the president’s influence over foreign policy. The second force is the prioritization of national security over other strategic interests. National securities, and the perceived threats of the United States’ hostile policies, directly influence Iranian static foreign policy priorities. The third key force is Iran’s ongoing international blockage by the West, and its need to keep pushing back. Iran has a fear of regime change as posed by the regional containment policy of Western powers. This is the reason why Iran has maintained its anti-Western/anti-American ideological stance. Finally, maintaining the domestic political order remains a primary driving force of Iran’s ruling elite. ‘Revolutionism’ and pan-Shiism serve to continue Iran’s revolutionary domestic political order, constructed in opposition to capitalism and imperialism.2 Theoretically speaking, while the international system and structural conditions drive Iran’s foreign policy priorities, domestic political factors have also played a major role in shaping Iran’s foreign policy over the past four decades. In attempting to understand the nature of continuity and the possibility of change in Iran’s foreign policy, many questions emerge from the literature:3 To what extent has there been continuity and change in Iran’s foreign policy since the Islamic Revolution of 1979? What type of coalitions and geo-political logic would allow for shifts in Iran’s foreign policy? Have reformist presidents created meaningful foreign policy change in Iran? Is Iran’s new moderate president, Hassan Rouhani, able to initiate structural foreign policy change? What are the prospects for change in Iranian foreign policy? These theoretical and practical concerns highlight the need for stronger academic contribution on the main drivers that underlie Iran’s foreign policy. This review article will focus on two frequently referenced books, both of which aim to provide answers from an Iranian viewpoint, to the previous questions.
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The Frigate Ertugrul as a Turning Point in the Ottoman Relations with Japan and the Lands En Route
(Bilkent University, 2021) Alkhatib, Yahya; Lotfiazar, Radman; Amini, Khashayar; Sohail, Mohammed
Bu araştırma da Sultan 2. Abdülhamid’in Japonya’ya gönderdiği fırkateynin dönüş yolunda nasıl battığı incelenecektir. Temel olarak bu araştırma fırkateynin yolculuğunu iki ana bakış açısı altında inceleyecek olup, birincisi Japonya-Osmanlı ilişkisinde oluşturduğu kilometre taşı olması ciheti, ikincisi ise 2. Abdülhamid’in Ertuğrul fırkateynini İslam dünyasının farklı bölgelerine, özellikle Güney ve Güneydoğu Asya’daki Müslüman ülkelerine, göndererek yabancı ülkelerle ilişkilerinde güttüğü Pan-İslamizm politikası incelenecektir.
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Germany’s and Turkey’s communicated soft power presence in Kosovo: a comparative analysis of two foreign policies
(2017-06) Ozan, Levent
Despite its vast literature, scholars and policymakers concerned with soft power are still plagued with numerous uncertainties, such as how soft power can be derived effectively; what attraction specifically entails; or soft power’s domestic dimensions and its expression in foreign policy. This dissertation attempts to analyze the question of how states differ in the communication of their soft power. In order to realize this goal, a comparative study scrutinizing the communicated soft power presence in Kosovo of Turkey and Germany – two key states that have actively been engaged in the Balkan region – has been undertaken. The methods of the research were a combined effort of literature review, field interviews with state officials, analysts, and academics, and webbased content analysis of German and Turkish newspaper and governmental websites. It has found that while there is an overlap of attribute focus between the two states, specifically in terms of “culture and ideational influence”, the literature and field interviews of each country suggest that the communicated soft power ends up vastly different. It appears that Turkey’s soft power communication has been heavily influenced by certain key policy figures. Germany’s soft power, on the other hand, has been much more institutionalized. Given that successful soft power communication requires intangibility/invisibility, Germany’s soft power in Kosovo may also be more stable in the long-term.
Open Access
Transformation of the Turkish religious right with focus on the impact of state elites, globalization and Europeanization
(2012) Köni, Hakan
This dissertation is aims to analyze the change of Turkish religious right from National View parties to the Justice and Development Party in its goal and issue orientation in terms of the importance given to religion, and the influence of state elites, globalization and Europeanization in this process. This analysis will become possible with the help of a set of theoretical approaches offered to explain the causes and nature of party change particularly those of them examining the role of environmental changes in the change of party ideology or policy. Based on a detailed examination of the views and policies of relevant parties on issues of foreign policy and domestic politics, it is observed that Turkish religious right has evolved from a conservative religious movement with occasional radical tendencies to a moderate conservative one. The impact of state elites in this change is detected to be related with their secularist conception and applications which could be explained in short as opposition to the presence of religion in public life in substantial ways. Globalization and Europeanization, secondly, is explored to be associated with the process with the strong propensity and willingness they bring in to religious right towards the adoption and promotion of western political, economic and cultural norms, principles and institutions, and establishment of deeper and closer relations with the west. In foreign policy, the movement has shown a gradual shift from a substantially culturalist to a pragmatist and rational approach. While the National View parties followed a foreign policy program defending the necessity of establishing close ties with the Muslim world and minimizing relations with the West; the Justice and Development Party is with the idea of leading Turkey into a process of greater integration and cooperation with the west. The JDP has not turned its back to the Muslim world, but concerns for political, legal and social reforms have started to occupy a more important place in its Middle East agenda compared to traditional cultural concerns. In domestic politics, secondly, the most remarkable change is detected in transition from a succession of parties aiming to introduce Islamic norms and principles in public life to a party aiming to introduce rights and freedoms for its conservative electorate through the mechanisms provided by liberal democratic systems with clear detachment from the goal of introducing Islamic law and state.
Open Access
Turkish and European representations of the Syrian refugees: political leverage vs. humanitarian ideals
(2017-12) Canpolat, Begüm Ceren
The internal unrest that broke out in 2011 in Syria has caused the biggest refugee influx Europe has seen since the Second World War. Turkey, as Syria’s neighbour country, hosts the largest number of Syrian refugees. Due to its geographical position, Turkey plays an important role in shaping European refugee policy. Similarly, Turkey has largely been affected by the negotiations with the EU and by European policies on Syrian refugees. This dissertation attempts to analyze the question of how the Turkish and EU authorities have represented the influx of Syrian refugees and how these representations or constructed perceptions of ‘the problem’ impacted on their bilateral relations and foreign policies. In order to achieve this goal, the approach of “What is the problem represented to be?” (WPR) has been used as an analytical tool to scrutinize Turkish and European foreign policy representations and investigate their bilateral relations in accordance with Syrian refugee crisis policies. The methods of the research were a combined effort of literature review, an analysis of official policy documents attained through governmental websites, and a web-based analysis of Turkish and European newspapers. The research has found that despite each actor’s/government’s representation of the problem as a humanitarian issue, each party tends to prioritize its self-interests and neglect the root causes of the problem in the policy making process.
Open Access
Westernization, modernization and Turkish-Arab relations during Democrat Party era
(2001) Ocaklı, Sait
Academic studies on Turkish foreign policy claim that Turkey’s foreign policy objectives after the transition to a multiparty democracy indicate cleavages with the mono-party period. According to these studies, while the Republican rule between 1923-1950 refrained from intervening in Middle Eastern matters, the Democrats drew Turkey into adventures in the region. This thesis argues that although Turkish foreign policy objectives during the Democrat era seemed to indicate differences from the preceding era, these differences insofar as the Middle East was concerned were more of style than substance. Turkey’s attitudes towards the Middle East were strongly affected by western objectives in the region which themselves were affected by changes in the world balance of power after 1945. Turkey’s own foreign policy objectives were very much framed within the context of the overarching goal of adaptation to westernisation laid down by the founders of the republic. The western factor therefore played a determining role in Turkey’s foreign policy planning. Given that the Arab world remained under western domination, it was therefore inevitable that relations between Turkey and Arab governments would be adversely affected.