American Turkish relations 1945-1960 : the roots of a long-term alliance

Abstract

The United States and Turkey made an important alliance during the early Cold War and their alliance had an important role in the course of the Cold War. By the end of World War II, the United States felt the need to contain the Communist expansion led by the Soviet Union since it posed a threat to the American economic and security interests. On the other hand, the Soviet Union threatened Turkey’s territorial integrity denouncing the Turkish-Soviet Treaty of Friendship, dated November 17,1925. Turkey also needed economic aid to overcome its serious economic problems that increased by the end of the war. In the face of the common threat, Turkey and the United States formed an alliance, which would continue throughout the Cold War and has stretched until today. The 1950s has often been referred as the “golden age” of American-Turkish relations, however, it witnessed some disagreements and problems between the two countries, which damaged their relationship to some extent and formed the basis of their greater problems in the period after 1960. This is a chronological study, which aims to illuminate the history of AmericanTurkish relations between 1945-1960, using U.S. government documents, journal articles, memoirs and secondary sources when necessary. The material is organized chronologically into three parts: the early American-Turkish relations by the end of World War II; the period between the Truman Doctrine and Turkey’s entry into NATO; and finally the American-Turkish relations during the Eisenhower Presidency.