Doğu ile Batı Arasında Türkiye: Siyasi Tercih mi, Pragmatizm mi?

Abstract

Turkey’s relations with the countries of the Asia-Pacific are on the rise with a strong focus on the economic dimension, as Ankara increases its efforts to upgrade its trade and investment links with the economic powerhouses of Asia. This rapprochement with Asian countries takes place at a time when Turkey’s relations with the West are going through difficult times, which leads to popular propositions based on the false dichotomy of Turkey ideologically choosing the East over the West. This article proposes that rather than a binary choice of improving relations with a group of countries at the expense of others, Turkey’s efforts can be more accurately interpreted as pragmatic foreign policy activism aimed at diversifying the country’s relations with a focus on gaining a certain degree of strategic autonomy and avoiding excessive dependence on any party at a time when the world is going through an era of significant uncertainty. It is also noted that while Turkey’s economic relations with Asia are yet to take off in a significant way, Ankara's foreign policy pragmatism and its quest for strategic autonomy require not only strengthening relations with the Asia-Pacific, but also re-calibrating ties with traditional partners and allies in the West such as the United States and the European Union.