Five Phases of AKP Identity Politics and how it affects Turkey-EU Relations (original) (raw)
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2018
FEUTURE Online Paper No. 19 This paper presents a trends survey of identity-related primarily European representations of Turkey (but also vice versa) in the 1999-2017 timeframe with a view to identifying the most salient, pertinent, and durable drivers likely to obtain and drive the relations between Turkey and the EU into 2023. It identifies four key drivers underpinning European representations of Turkey, three drivers underpinning Turkish representations of Europe and one shared driver that collectively reveal the underlying dynamics of identity-related representations of each other, a both pivotal and often controversial aspect of EU-Turkey relations. In conclusion, the paper unfolds the nature of the likely scenario of a 'conflictual orientation' in 2023, and adds some initial recommendations for decision makers and stakeholders to address this often both sensitive and elusive aspect of EU-Turkey relations.
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Manchester University Press eBooks, 2018
Turkey constitutes a particularly challenging case with regard to European isation studies as well as the importance of identity politics in its relations to the European Union (EU). While Turkey can certainly count itself among Europe's neighbours, it is also much more than that. A candidate country with EU aspirations, an emerging economy comprising a mostly young and increasingly better educated population, Turkey's cultural diversity and regional importance make it a particularly worthy case study. Starting from the 1960s and the signing of the Turkey-EU (then the European Economic Community (EEC)) Association Agreement, the rela tionship between the two sides has been, and remains, tumultuous, subject to calculations and ractical manoeuvring resulting from a changing politi cal and economic landscape. While EU accession has long been at the core of Turkey's Westernisation and modernisation strategy, which would cement its role within the Western security and political economy nexus, this approach has been subject to change in recent years. Interestingly, this development has occurred precisely at the time when relations with the EU have strengthened, negotiations to join the EU have been launched and partnership with the Union has extended to more policy fields. To explain this rather paradoxical development, one needs to approach the issue from another perspective too, namely that of the EU. Enlargement to Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) proved controversial among the EU-15 public and the notion of 'enlargement fatigue' swiftly entered the European elites' vocabulary. Hesitation and (in some quarters) outright hostility to the prospect of Turkish EU accession have led to a serious backlash in Turkey. Domestic political elites have signalled, in turn, their unwillingness to 'bow' to EU pressure, leading to an escalating war of words that has-perhaps fatally-undermined the prospects of Turkish accession in the future. Nevertheless, Turkey's key geographic location, ample economic poten tial and assertive policies in the region render the EU-Turkey relationship subject to contingent factors with long-term repercussions and do not
Uluslararası İlişkiler, 2023
is an empirically rich and theoretically well-designed account of Turkish foreign policy and domestic politics. It is derived from Hintz's PhD thesis supervised by Marc Lynch at the George Washington University, 1 which is also partially published in the European Journal of International Relations in 2016. 2 The book's main theoretical premise is that domestic identity contestations are transferred to the domain of foreign policy when identity proposals are blocked in the domestic arena. Building on its identification of major national-identity proposals struggling for hegemony in Turkey, the book explains on this theoretical ground the Justice and Development Party's (Adalet ve Kalkınma Partisi, AKP) early policy towards the European Union (EU) accession process and the "Ottoman Islamist" transformation of Turkish foreign policy and domestic politics. Hintz argues that when its "Ottoman Islamist" identity proposal was blocked by "Republican Nationalist" institutions in the domestic domain, the AKP moved to the foreign policy arena to weaken these institutions, overcome their blockage, and eventually, open space for its identity proposal.
Turkey-EU Relations and the Representation of AK Party in the Western Political and Media Discourse
University of Warwick, 2015
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“The West has always been prejudiced against the Turks… but we Turks have always consistently moved towards the West… In order to be a civilized nation, there is no alternative.” (M. Kemal Ataturk) Begüm Burak Abstract This paper attempts to analyze Turkey’s European Union (EU) candidacy in the context of the harmony and/or disharmony of Turkish domestic politics with the EU’s accordance criteria, concerning economic and political reforms with a special reference to Turkish political and ideological identity as well as Turkish security culture. The paper focuses on the question of “how to make sense of Turkey’s changing security culture?” The study focuses on the question of why Turkey wants to be a part of Europe by carrying out a considerable amount of reforms. Building on the social constructivist International Relations (IR) Theory, it tries to illustrate the clashing and conciliating facets of Turkey-EU relations in the context of identity issues. In addition to evaluating the prevailing efforts of Turkey to become a part of the EU, the paper also suggests that the Realist IR Theory cannot provide a sufficient explanation in revealing Turkey’s reform movements towards becoming a full member of the EU. As known, with the end of the Cold War, the international politics have witnessed the dominance of identity issues, cultural norms, and ideational streams directing a strict criticism towards the Realist IR Theory. Within his context, in this study, it is mainly argued that, Turkey’s increasing efforts in becoming a part of the Europe can well be analyzed from a social constructivist IR Theory perspective, rather than a Realist perspective. Key Words: Turkey; European Union; Social Constructivism; Realism; Identity; Culture
Abstract This paper attempts to analyze Turkey’s European Union (EU) candidacy in the context of the harmony and/or disharmony of Turkish domestic politics with the EU’s accordance criteria, concerning economic and political reforms with a special reference to Turkish political and ideological identity as well as Turkish security culture. The paper focuses on the question of “how to make sense of Turkey’s changing security culture?” The study focuses on the question of why Turkey wants to be a part of Europe by carrying out a considerable amount of reforms. Building on the social constructivist International Relations (IR) Theory, it tries to illustrate the clashing and conciliating facets of Turkey-EU relations in the context of identity issues. In addition to evaluating the prevailing efforts of Turkey to become a part of the EU, the paper also suggests that the Realist IR Theory cannot provide a sufficient explanation in revealing Turkey’s reform movements towards becoming a full member of the EU. As known, with the end of the Cold War, the international politics have witnessed the dominance of identity issues, cultural norms, and ideational streams directing a strict criticism towards the Realist IR Theory. Within his context, in this study, it is mainly argued that, Turkey’s increasing efforts in becoming a part of the Europe can well be analyzed from a social constructivist IR Theory perspective, rather than a Realist perspective. Key Words: Turkey; European Union; Social Constructivism; Realism; Identity; Culture
Turkey: Identity, Foreign Policy, and Socialization in a Post‐Enlargement Europe
This article analyzes the implications of post‐enlargement European international society for Turkey in three areas: identity construction, foreign policy and political reform. First, through an analysis of post‐2007 European Parliament debates on EU–Turkey relations, it argues that the construction of European and Turkish identities vis‐à‐vis each other is likely to remain an important arena of contestation. Second, it provides a brief overview of Turkey’s new regional foreign policy activism, and argues the recent initiatives are in fact signs of adaptation to a post‐enlargement Europe, as they are building on a foreign policy role conception that stresses Turkey’s hybrid identity as both European and Asian, and Western and Islamic. Finally, it analyzes the diffusion of the norms of European international society to Turkey in the post‐2007 period, in particular focusing on the critical role played by domestic political actors. While Turkish political actors are showing signs of adaptation in terms of how they utilize the political opportunity structures in post‐enlargement Europe, the weakening of Turkey’s EU membership prospects is likely to slow down the diffusion of European norms to Turkey.
On the basis and the formation of relations between Turkey and Europe lies in many trigger factors. The fundamental subject and factors such as economy, politics, religion, culture and identity which are widely discussed by Turkish and European policy-makers and elites, not only help the formation of relations between Turkey and European countries, but also cause deterioration of this relations (Aydın-Düzgit and Tocci, 2015 p.180). Herewith, there have been a lot of different factors shaping the relations between Turkey and the European Union and the most significant of these factors have been emerged throughout history are the divergent identities and cultures between Europe and Turkey. It can be said that these two factors 'culture and identity' are fundamental dynamics of the relationship between Europe and Turkey from the Ottoman to the Present. Further, at the end of the twentieth century, the European Union's idea and desire of a political unity brought about identity and culture debates. For this reason, Europeans were in search of a common identity. Therefore, the idea of building a common 'European' identity which sometimes create some problems for the Other, is not just a rhetoric, we can also see it in practice in the present European Union. In addition to that, the common identity formation process aims at structuring above the national identities by providing life space to the different identities based on 'the unity in diversity'. In this sense, Turkey plays various role in the process of identity formation of the EU owing to the constitutive dimensions of Self/other interaction. There are three important constitutive dimensions of self/other interactions that shape the EU's mode of differentiation and the role of Turkey in the EU's identity formation. These dimensions are nature of identity/difference (inclusive and exclusive identities), response of other (recognition and resistance), and social distance (associating and dissociating) (Rumelili, 2004 p.36). In the following sections, the process of identity formation in the EU and Turkey, how they define and affect each other through identity, and the self/other interactions among them are tried to explain by using the characteristics of these three dimensions.
Turkey in Eurasia: Identity and Foreign Policy
The use of Turkist discourse towards Turkic Republics by Erdogan and Davutoglu was analyzed. The paradox is that while using Turkist discourse, the AKP tries to alter the official understanding of Turkish nation, by defining Turks not as a nation, but only one of ethnic groups in Turkey.