Illusions Versus Reality: Turkey’s Approach To Middle East And North Africa – Analysis
April 16, 2015 FRIDE Leave a comment
By FRIDE
By Soli Özel and Behlül Özkan*
When the Justice and Development Party (AKP) came to power in Turkey in 2002, it was able to build upon an emerging regional role to create a new, multifaceted Turkish foreign policy brand. Having positioned itself as a regional mediator during the first decade of the 2000s, by the time of the 2011 Arab uprisings Turkey had shifted its role towards a more intrusive style in dealing with its Middle Eastern neighbours. Four years later, Turkey’s once so promising regional standing lies in ruins. Ankara has lost its gamble on Islamists holding power in transitioning neighbours; has discredited its discourse on the need for democratisation across the region as a thinly veiled hegemonic ambition; and has squandered most of its regional geopolitical capital.
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