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451. Obama's Foreign Policy: Opportunities and Challenges

Author:
F. Stephen Larrabee
Publication Date:
01-2009
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Insight Turkey
Institution:
SETA Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research
Abstract:
Obama's election represents an important opportunity to put US- Turkish relations on a new, more cooperative footing. On many issues – especially those related to the Middle East – Obama's positions overlap or closely coincide with those of Turkey more than the policies pursued by the Bush administration. This is particularly true regarding Iran and Syria, which should help to reduce these issues as irritants in US-Turkish relations. The critical question mark is what position Obama will take regarding the Armenian genocide resolution, which is likely to be reintroduced in Congress in 2009. Passage of the resolution could deal a severe blow to prospects for putting US-Turkish relations on a new, more stable footing as well as undermine recent efforts at promoting Turkish-Armenian reconciliation that have opened up since President Gul's historic visit to Yerevan in September
Political Geography:
United States, Iran, Turkey, Middle East, and Syria

452. Obama's Turkey Policy: Bringing Credibility to "Strategic Partnership"

Author:
Ömer Taspinar
Publication Date:
01-2009
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Insight Turkey
Institution:
SETA Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research
Abstract:
Under the Obama administration American foreign policy will be engaged in genuine coalition building with allies. Such a return to multilateralism will have a positive impact on transatlantic and Turkish-American relations. Just like under the Clinton presidency during the late 1990s, Turkey needs American support to undo the deadlock with the European Union. America's return to Middle East diplomacy will also improve Turkish-American relations since the Obama administration is much more likely to support Ankara's openings to Damascus. Turkey should make an effort to host a new Arab-Israeli peace process in the framework of an international conference in Istanbul. In the short run Ankara can avoid problems with Washington on the Armenian issue if it decides to enhance its military and civilian support to NATO forces in Afghanistan.
Topic:
Foreign Policy
Political Geography:
Afghanistan, America, Washington, Turkey, Middle East, and Armenia

453. Charting Turkish Diplomacy in the Gaza Conflict

Author:
Selin M. Bolme
Publication Date:
01-2009
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Insight Turkey
Institution:
SETA Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research
Abstract:
On December 27, 2008, Israel launched a deadly attack on Gaza. Turkey responded immediately to the Israeli attacks and strongly criticized the operation. Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan embarked on a tour of Syria, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and Egypt to garner support for an immediate ceasefire. Turkey's active diplomacy in the Gaza crisis is an indication of Turkey's new foreign policy vision and a self-confidence consolidated by strengthening relations with regional powers. Turkey's proactive policy in the region does not suggest that it will discontinue its relations with one side or the other. In fact, this supposition is marked by the old belief that Turkish foreign policy has a single axis or dimension. By observing the balance of power and keeping all actors involved in the process, Ankara has a greater chance of finding a just and sustainable solution to the Palestinian problem.
Topic:
Foreign Policy
Political Geography:
Turkey, Israel, South Africa, Gaza, Syria, Egypt, and Jordan

454. Turkey's Justice and Development Party through Arab Eyes

Author:
Mounir Shafiq
Publication Date:
01-2009
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Insight Turkey
Institution:
SETA Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research
Abstract:
In this article we seek to answer three interrelated questions: First, how do Islamic, national and democratic forces in the Arab world perceive the Justice and Development Party (AKP)? Is it an Islamic or a secular movement? Second, how do Arab political elites perceive the party's foreign policy, especially its relationship with Israel, America and the European Union? In this regard, we specifically explore how they perceive the AKP's political role in mediating indirectly the Syrian-Israeli dialogue, and its attempts to mediate between the US and Iran. Third, what are the prospects for the realization of the AKP's political project? Is it likely that the AKP will succeed in transforming Turkey into an "economic tiger," profiting from the existing strategy of positive relationships with America, Israel and Europe?
Topic:
Development
Political Geography:
United States, America, Europe, Iran, Turkey, Israel, and Arabia

455. Arab-Turkish Cooperation in the New Era

Author:
Mohammed Noureddine
Publication Date:
01-2009
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Insight Turkey
Institution:
SETA Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research
Abstract:
After decades of ups and downs in relations between Turkey and the Arab world the Development and Justice Party that differed ideologically from other political parties brought a new vision for the future of relations with the Arab and Islamic world. Based on the geographical, historical and cultural depth of Turkey the new leadership pursued a "multidimensional" policy that allowed a new opening to the Arab world. The key for the success of this approach was the "impartiality" of Ankara vis-a-vis the conflicts between the Arab states in addition to Turkey's abstention from engaging in the "game of axes" in the region. This paper does not only explain the nature of the existing potentials to develop cooperation between Turkey and the Arab states, but it also offers a number of practical and specific suggestions.
Topic:
Development
Political Geography:
Turkey and Arabia

456. Understanding the New Turkey: An Egyptian Perspective

Author:
Mustafa El-Labbad
Publication Date:
01-2009
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Insight Turkey
Institution:
SETA Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research
Abstract:
Arab-Turkish relations have always been -- at least since the Cold War -- haunted by the Arab elite's concerns, which with time became an obstacle to viewing Turkey's cultural and strategic dimensions or its national and sectarian components. The majority of the elite have branded Turkey with subordination to an international bloc, taking into consideration the Cold War experience and Turkey's entry into CENTO and then NATO. Reducing Turkey's domestic and regional policies to a narrow framework and viewing it in an ideological perspective prevented them from understanding the changes in a country that strongly affects the region. There is no unified Egyptian perspective on Turkey as the Islamists' views differ from that of the nationalists and the leftists. Overall ideological considerations influence the objective valuation of Turkey's domestic politics as well as its regional policy among the Egyptian elite.
Topic:
NATO and Cold War
Political Geography:
Turkey, Arabia, and Egypt

457. The Arabs and Modern Turkey: A Century of Changing Perceptions

Author:
Basheer M. Nafi
Publication Date:
01-2009
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Insight Turkey
Institution:
SETA Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research
Abstract:
For centuries, the Arabs and Turks were subjects of the Ottoman Sultanate, and were largely shaped by the dominant Ottoman culture and mode of religiosity. The founding of the Turkish Republic and several Arab states during the 1920s created a new political map in the region and subsequently led to the evolvement of a new Arab consciousness of the modern Turkey. This article explains the role played by four major factors in framing the Turkish image in Arab eyes: interpretations of the Ottoman past, legacy of the Kemalist era, conflicts and alliances of the Cold War period, and the recent rise to power of the Justice and Development Party. The article concludes by underlining the challenges that the Arabs and the Turks are now facing to enhance the relations between them as nations, not subjects of an empire.
Topic:
Cold War
Political Geography:
Turkey and Arabia

458. Debating Turkey in the Middle East: The Dawn of a New Geo-Political Imagination?

Author:
Ibrahim Kalin
Publication Date:
01-2009
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Insight Turkey
Institution:
SETA Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research
Abstract:
The interest Turkey has generated in the Arab world over the last few years is caused by the convergence of changes in Turkey, the Middle East and the global power-balance. Turkey's domestic political process, its new foreign policy and the EU membership process are closely followed in the larger Muslim world. The new configurations of power in the Middle East and the world at large lead to new types of geopolitical imagination. From Turkish soap operas and import products to Turkey's involvements in Lebanon and Palestine, Turkey is claiming a new space in the Arab public opinion in a manner never seen before. While AK Party's ties with the Arab and Muslim world are partly responsible for Turkey's renewed foreign policy activism in the region, the current debate is also reflective of the failures of the international system and heralds the advent of a new balance of power in Turkey's immediate neighborhood.
Topic:
Foreign Policy
Political Geography:
Turkey, Middle East, Palestine, Arabia, and Lebanon

459. A New Agenda for the Kurdish Question

Author:
Taha Ozhan and Ozhan Ete
Publication Date:
01-2009
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Insight Turkey
Institution:
SETA Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research
Abstract:
The Kurdish question in Turkey has a long history which was viewed within the framework of nation building, integration and underdevelopment until it was perceived as a security issue with the emergence of the PKK in the 1980s. During the 1990s, dominated by the security perspective, the scope of the question was reduced to terrorist acts alone under a state of emergency rule. A number of changes transformed the nature of question, such as the Kurdish political movement since the 1990s, forced migration, the capture of PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan in 1999 and the emergence of autonomous Kurdish government in northern Iraq. A permanent settlement of the Kurdish question must be based on developing new and alternative strategies vis-a-vis existing policies. In this context, a comprehensive package of measures should include not only security measures, but more importantly democratic reforms and economic investments.
Topic:
Security, Development, and Government
Political Geography:
Iraq and Turkey

460. Compatibility of "Islam" and "Europe": Turkey's EU Accession

Author:
Ahmet Yukleyen
Publication Date:
01-2009
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Insight Turkey
Institution:
SETA Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research
Abstract:
Turkey's membership in the European Union (EU) is contingent on economic, political, and cultural factors. Rather than a geographic area with a particular cultural and religious history, the EU defines "Europe" as a political project that espouses values such as human rights, pluralist democracy, and a liberal economy. However, Turkey's EU accession process highlights the cultural and religious dimension through which "Islam" and "Europe" may be mutually redefined. This article examines how Turkish Muslim immigrants in Europe have become an example of the compatibility of "Islam" and "Europe." It is concluded that opposing Turkey's EU membership based on essentializing arguments of cultural and religious difference is misleading and counterproductive, as it fails to address the shifting boundaries of Europe and of Islam.
Topic:
Economics and Islam
Political Geography:
Europe and Turkey