DOCSLIB.ORG

Erdoğan and Öcalan Begin Talks. a Paradigm Shift in Turkey's Kurdish

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Erdoğan and Öcalan Begin Talks. a Paradigm Shift in Turkey's Kurdish Introduction Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik ments German Institute for International and Security Affairs m Co Erdoğan and Öcalan Begin Talks WP A Paradigm Shift in Turkey’s Kurdish Policy and a New Strategy of the PKK Kevin Matthees and Günter Seufert S The ceasefire between the Turkish government and the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) is more than just a new attempt by Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s administra- tion to bring an end to the asymmetric war that has been waged for nearly 30 years in Turkey’s predominantly Kurdish south-east. For the first time, the Turkish government has demonstrated its willingness to recognise PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan, who has been imprisoned since 1999, as the chief negotiator for the Kurdish side. Although the negotiations are being held as unofficial talks under the aegis of the Turkish intel- ligence services (MİT), the prime minister himself and members of his cabinet have directly commented on their progress. Of no less significance are the changes on the part of the Kurdish movement. Under Öcalan’s influence, representatives of the pro- Kurdish Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) have backed away from seeking to establish a Kurdish national state. Öcalan himself has even been voicing doubts about the whole idea of the nation state as such. Thus, the outlines of a new vision for Turkey and for the country’s future role in the Middle East, shared by the Turkish government and the militant Kurdish opposition, are beginning to emerge. After month-long negotiations with the would not take advantage of a truce to carry Turkish intelligence services, the leader out attacks against PKK fighters withdraw- of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), ing from Turkish territory to northern Iraq Abdullah Öcalan, marked the start of the and Syria. This practically amounts to an ac- Kurdish New Year on 21 March 2013 with ceptance of the PKK’s long-standing demand a call for an end to the armed insurrection. for a mutual ceasefire. On the very same day, Murat Karayılan, A series of confidence-building measures commander of the armed wing of the par- had preceded this change in policy. On ty, ordered an indefinite ceasefire. In ex- 13 March 2013, armed PKK militants in the change, the Turkish air force has since sus- Kurdish region of northern Iraq near the pended its strikes on PKK positions in the Turkish border had released eight Turkish Qandil mountains in northern Iraq. Prime civil servants, some of whom had been held Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan had stated captive for more than one and a half years. several times that the Turkish military It seems that the Turkish intelligence ser- Kevin Matthees is an intern at SWP’s EU External Relations Division SWP Comments 13 Dr. Günter Seufert is a Senior Associate in SWP’s EU External Relations Division April 2013 1 vice had been engaged in secret talks with completed their withdrawal by early Öcalan on behalf of the government since November, Turkey is supposed to change as early as November 2012. With Ankara’s laws that exclude Kurds from politics and blessing, two parliament members from criminalise Kurdish political positions. This the pro-Kurdish Peace and Democracy Party should include, for instance, lowering the (BDP) had visited Öcalan in early January 10-percent threshold for parliamentary rep- 2013 at the high-security prison on the resentation to a level that is more in line island of İmralı, where he is being held. A with the standard European practice, for- second BDP delegation that had met with mulating a clearer – and more restricted – Öcalan on 23 February delivered letters definition of terrorism in both the counter- from him to top officials of the BDP, to terrorism law and the penal code, as well as the current PKK military leadership in the releasing political prisoners. Local authori- Qandil mountains of northern Iraq, as ties should receive more powers and in well as to the PKK’s inner circle of leaders regions with significant Kurdish popula- in Europe. In these dispatches, Öcalan tions, native language instruction should explained his decision to halt the armed be provided and Kurdish declared the campaign, specified the reforms he ex- second official language. These reforms pected from the Turkish state and outlined should find their symbolic expression in the steps to be taken in the withdrawal of the removal of references to “Turkishness” PKK militants from Turkey. After receiving and thus ethnic criteria from the Constitu- responses from the BDP as well as from PKK tion’s definition of citizenship. Once the leaders in northern Iraq and Europe, on unchecked pursuit of Kurdish political 21 March Öcalan called for an end to the interests, including those of former PKK fighting. members, is possible within the civil-politi- The peace process did suffer a setback, cal process, the PKK will, according to Öca- however, in early April. Erdoğan pressed for lan’s roadmap, lay down its arms for good. the PKK fighters to lay down their weapons One of the government’s first reactions and leave Turkey whilst at the same time to the plan was to admonish the PKK mili- refusing to seek parliamentary approval for tants to complete their withdrawal by late his policy, as demanded by the Kurdish June or, at the very latest, early November side. The government wants to prevent the when budget deliberations begin. PKK from gaining legitimacy as a result of This peace plan of the PKK leader basi- the negotiations. Yet it will not be possible cally represents a slightly watered-down to keep this from happening. In an effort to version of the measures that he already build public support for the initiative, the proposed in 2009. So why is the Turkish government has established a “council of government now embracing a course of the wise” consisting of 63 prominent public action that it rejected in the past? figures, which is set to begin its work in the coming days. The peace plan proposed by Öcalan re- Domestic policy: an about-face on quires armed militants to withdraw from central convictions and positions Turkey to bases in northern Iraq and Syria. Many observers have answered this ques- The pull-back is to be overseen by parlia- tion by saying that Prime Minister Erdoğan ment and monitored by civil society orga- seeks to move Turkey to a presidential sys- nisations. At the same time, Turkey is sup- tem of government and is therefore alter- posed to initiate confidence-building ing the constitution for just this purpose, measures like setting up a truth-finding with the ultimate aim of becoming the commission to address past human rights country’s first president with expanded violations and political murders in the powers in August 2014. They have pointed Kurdish region. Once PKK militants have out that as his party lacks the qualified SWP Comments 13 April 2013 2 majority needed to make changes to the ernment is aware of the limited reach of charter on its own, Erdoğan needs the sup- its former military and political strategy of port of the pro-Kurdish BDP and is promis- marginalising the PKK. The present decision ing to give the Kurds greater local auton- to change course can only be understood omy in return. against this backdrop, which compels Tur- Yet as accurate as this description of key to fundamentally revise its previous Erdoğan’s personal motivations may be, it positions on the Kurdish conflict as well as alone cannot explain the current strategic its very conception of itself. shift. Too great is the risk that Erdoğan This explains why Ankara is allowing runs if his initiative fails; too deeply in- the legal pro-Kurdish BDP to take part in grained are the taboos that this new policy the current talks the government is con- challenges. ducting with Öcalan and the PKK, thus Through the present negotiations with recognising the BDP as the official political the PKK, the government has implicitly arm of the PKK. It was precisely the refusal turned against its previously held notion to make this concession that led to eight that a 30-year armed guerilla movement pro-Kurdish parties being either outlawed could be permanently defeated and the or forced to dissolve over the last 21 years. Kurdish problem solved by military means The second taboo that has been broken alone. The PKK consisted of only around concerns Öcalan himself. In the past 30 150 recruits when it began to mount years he was cast as the arch enemy of the attacks in 1984. It is assumed that 1,500 to Turkish people and nation. To negotiate 2,000 militants are active in Turkey today. with him means crossing a psychological Öcalan also claims that the PKK has 10,000 barrier – probably the most emphatically militants in northern Iraq, 40,000 in Iran drawn red line of the former Kurdish and another 50,000 in Syria. After three policy. Yet today the government is com- decades of hostilities and some 40,000 lost mitted to having Öcalan, previously vilified lives, Ankara has come to the conclusion as the head terrorist, serve as the main link that the PKK would still be a force to be between the BDP and PKK, thus recognising reckoned with even if it succeeded in re- him as representative of the Kurdish na- ducing the movement to its original size. tional movement. What is more, by enter- The resumption of negotiations also ing into negotiations with Öcalan and the testifies to the dwindling confidence of the PKK, the government implicitly accepts the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) idea that the sovereign state of Turkey is in its ability to maintain strong support made up of two peoples – the Turks and from broad segments of the Kurdish elec- the Kurds.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Turkey's Deep State
    #1.12 PERSPECTIVES Political analysis and commentary from Turkey FEATURE ARTICLES TURKEY’S DEEP STATE CULTURE INTERNATIONAL POLITICS ECOLOGY AKP’s Cultural Policy: Syria: The Case of the Seasonal Agricultural Arts and Censorship “Arab Spring” Workers in Turkey Pelin Başaran Transforming into the Sidar Çınar Page 28 “Arab Revolution” Page 32 Cengiz Çandar Page 35 TURKEY REPRESENTATION Content Editor’s note 3 ■ Feature articles: Turkey’s Deep State Tracing the Deep State, Ayşegül Sabuktay 4 The Deep State: Forms of Domination, Informal Institutions and Democracy, Mehtap Söyler 8 Ergenekon as an Illusion of Democratization, Ahmet Şık 12 Democratization, revanchism, or..., Aydın Engin 16 The Near Future of Turkey on the Axis of the AKP-Gülen Movement, Ruşen Çakır 18 Counter-Guerilla Becoming the State, the State Becoming the Counter-Guerilla, Ertuğrul Mavioğlu 22 Is the Ergenekon Case an Opportunity or a Handicap? Ali Koç 25 The Dink Murder and State Lies, Nedim Şener 28 ■ Culture Freedom of Expression in the Arts and the Current State of Censorship in Turkey, Pelin Başaran 31 ■ Ecology Solar Energy in Turkey: Challenges and Expectations, Ateş Uğurel 33 A Brief Evaluation of Seasonal Agricultural Workers in Turkey, Sidar Çınar 35 ■ International Politics Syria: The Case of the “Arab Spring” Transforming into the “Arab Revolution”, Cengiz Çandar 38 Turkey/Iran: A Critical Move in the Historical Competition, Mete Çubukçu 41 ■ Democracy 4+4+4: Turning the Education System Upside Down, Aytuğ Şaşmaz 43 “Health Transformation Program” and the 2012 Turkey Health Panorama, Mustafa Sütlaş 46 How Multi-Faceted are the Problems of Freedom of Opinion and Expression in Turkey?, Şanar Yurdatapan 48 Crimes against Humanity and Persistent Resistance against Cruel Policies, Nimet Tanrıkulu 49 ■ News from hbs 53 Heinrich Böll Stiftung – Turkey Representation The Heinrich Böll Stiftung, associated with the German Green Party, is a legally autonomous and intellectually open political foundation.
    [Show full text]
  • The Functioning of Democratic Institutions in Turkey
    http://assembly.coe.int Doc. 15272 21 April 2021 The functioning of democratic institutions in Turkey Report1 Committee on the Honouring of Obligations and Commitments by Member States of the Council of Europe (Monitoring Committee) Co-rapporteurs: Mr Thomas HAMMARBERG, Sweden, Socialists, Democrats and Greens Group, and Mr John HOWELL, United Kingdom, European Conservatives Group and Democratic Alliance Summary The Monitoring Committee is deeply concerned about recent developments in Turkey which have further undermined democracy, the rule of law and human rights. Procedures seeking to lift the parliamentary immunity of a third of the parliamentarians (overwhelmingly from opposition parties), the attempt to close the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) and the continued crackdown on its members put political pluralism and the functioning of democratic institutions at risk. The presidential decision of 20 March 2021 to withdraw from the Council of Europe Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence against Women and Domestic Violence (CETS No.210, the Istanbul Convention) to combat violence against women and domestic violence is a regrettable step backwards, made without any parliamentary debate, which raises the question of the modalities of denunciation of conventions in democratic societies. The committee also urges the immediate release of Selahattin Demirtaş and Osman Kavala following the final judgments of the European Court of Human Rights. In order to reverse these worrying trends, the Turkish authorities should seize the opportunity of implementing the Human Rights Action Plan and revising the legislation on elections and political parties to take meaningful steps, put an end to the judicial harassment of opposition and dissenting voices, improve freedom of expression and media and restore the independence of the judiciary, in co-operation with the Council of Europe 1.
    [Show full text]
  • Kurden in Europa: Ethnizität Und Diaspora Kapitel 8: Konkurrenzkategorie Religion*
    www.yeziden-colloquium.de Kurden in Europa: Ethnizität und Diaspora Kapitel 8: Konkurrenzkategorie Religion* Birgit Ammann Die meisten Kurden gehören der sunnitischen Ausprägung des Islam, genauer bezeichnet der schafiitischen Rechtsschule,283 an (Antes 1997: 54; Werle & Kreile 1987: 34, 37), während Türken und Araber meistens der hanafitischen Schule angehören (Ibrahim 1998: 105; Hütteroth 1959: 277). In der iranischen Provinz Kermanshah, im irakischen Khana- qin sowie um die Städte Erbil und Kirkuk gibt es schiitische Kurden (Kreyenbroek 1996: 99). Wie sich im Laufe dieser Arbeit noch zeigen wird, spielt in kurdischen Zusammenhängen die, wenngleich minoritäre, Religionsgemeinschaft der Yeziden eine wichtige Rolle. Bei einem erheblichen Teil der in der Türkei lebenden Kurden handelt es sich um Aleviten, auf die ebenfalls noch detailliert eingegangen wird. Bis in die fünfziger Jahre des zwanzigsten Jahrhunderts lebte unter den Kurden eine Min- derheit von Juden, die sich in ihrem religiösen Leben und ihrer Sprache, dem Aramäi- schen, von ihrer Umgebung unterschieden (Brauer 1993; Ammann. 1991a). Ähnliches gilt für verschiedene christliche Gruppen, die bis heute mit Kurden zusammenleben und sich jeweils als eigene Ethnien betrachten.284 Außerdem gibt es unter den Kurden Anhänger islamischer Orden wie die Naqshabandi und die Qadhi sowie Sekten wie die der Ahl-i Haqq und andere.285 Insgesamt hatten solche Gruppen in den kurdischen Gebieten immer besonderen Einfluß, in der Migration spielen sie, wie auch schiitische Kurden, kaum eine Rolle. Traditionell definieren sich viele Gruppen primär über ihre Religionszugehörigkeit. Reli- giöse Lehren schließen ethnische Definitionen teil- [255] weise sogar völlig aus. Der is- lamische Begriff der umma, der Gemeinschaft aller Gläubigen, geht beispielsweise in die- se Richtung.
    [Show full text]
  • International Law and the 2003 Invasion of Iraq Revisited
    International Law and the 2003 Invasion of Iraq Revisited Donald K. Anton Associate Professor of Law The Australian National University College of Law Paper delivered April 30, 2013 Australian National University Asia-Pacific College of Diplomacy The Invasion of Iraq: Canadian and Australian Perspectives Seminar1 INTRODUCTION Good morning. Thank you to the organizers for inviting me to participate today in this retrospective on the 2003 invasion of Iraq. My role this morning, as I understand it, is to parse the international legal arguments surrounding the invasion and to reconsider them in the fullness of time that has elapsed. It is a role I agreed to take on with hesitation because it is difficult to add much that is new. I suppose I can take comfort in saying what I’ve already said, and saying it again today, because of how I view my obligations as an international lawyer. I believe we lawyers have a duty to stand up and insist that our leaders adhere to the rule of law in international relations and to help ensure that they are held accountable for the failure to do so. As I am sure you are all aware, much remains to be done in terms of accountability, especially in the United States, and it is disappointing that the Obama Administration has so far refused to prosecute what seem to be clear violations of the Torture Convention, including all the way up the chain of command if necessary. Today, however, my talk is confined to the legal arguments about the use of force in Iraq and an analysis of their persuasiveness.
    [Show full text]
  • Two Routes to an Impasse: Understanding Turkey's
    Two Routes to an Impasse: Understanding Turkey’s Kurdish Policy Ayşegül Aydin Cem Emrence turkey project policy paper Number 10 • December 2016 policy paper Number 10, December 2016 About CUSE The Center on the United States and Europe (CUSE) at Brookings fosters high-level U.S.-Europe- an dialogue on the changes in Europe and the global challenges that affect transatlantic relations. As an integral part of the Foreign Policy Studies Program, the Center offers independent research and recommendations for U.S. and European officials and policymakers, and it convenes seminars and public forums on policy-relevant issues. CUSE’s research program focuses on the transforma- tion of the European Union (EU); strategies for engaging the countries and regions beyond the frontiers of the EU including the Balkans, Caucasus, Russia, Turkey, and Ukraine; and broader European security issues such as the future of NATO and forging common strategies on energy security. The Center also houses specific programs on France, Germany, Italy, and Turkey. About the Turkey Project Given Turkey’s geopolitical, historical and cultural significance, and the high stakes posed by the foreign policy and domestic issues it faces, Brookings launched the Turkey Project in 2004 to foster informed public consideration, high‐level private debate, and policy recommendations focusing on developments in Turkey. In this context, Brookings has collaborated with the Turkish Industry and Business Association (TUSIAD) to institute a U.S.-Turkey Forum at Brookings. The Forum organizes events in the form of conferences, sem- inars and workshops to discuss topics of relevance to U.S.-Turkish and transatlantic relations.
    [Show full text]
  • Download Book
    Challenges to Democracy Political Studies Association Yearbook Series Titles include: Keith Dowding, James Hughes and Helen Margetts (editors) CHALLENGES TO DEMOCRACY Ideas, Involvement and Institutions Chris Pierson and Simon Tormey (editors) POLITICS AT THE EDGE The PSA Yearbook 1999 Political Studies Association Yearbook Series Standing Order ISBN 978-0-333-91373-4 (outside North America only) You can receive future titles in this series as they are published by placing a standing order. Please contact your bookseller or, in case of difficulty, write to us at the address below with your name and address, the title of the series and the ISBN quoted above. Customer Services Department, Macmillan Distribution Ltd, Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire RG21 6XS, England Challenges to Democracy Ideas, Involvement and Institutions The PSA Yearbook 2000 Edited by Keith Dowding Professor of Political Science London School of Economics James Hughes Senior Lecturer in Comparative Economics London School of Economics and Helen Margetts Professor of Political Science Director, School of Public Policy University College London in association with Political Studies Association © Political Studies Association 2001 Softcover reprint of the hardcover 1st edition 2001 978-0-333-78982-7 All rights reserved. No reproduction, copy or transmission of this publication may be made without written permission. No paragraph of this publication may be reproduced, copied or transmitted save with written permission or in accordance with the provisions of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, or under the terms of any licence permitting limited copying issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency, 90 Tottenham Court Road, London W1P 0LP. Any person who does any unauthorised act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages.
    [Show full text]
  • The Bush Revolution: the Remaking of America's Foreign Policy
    The Bush Revolution: The Remaking of America’s Foreign Policy Ivo H. Daalder and James M. Lindsay The Brookings Institution April 2003 George W. Bush campaigned for the presidency on the promise of a “humble” foreign policy that would avoid his predecessor’s mistake in “overcommitting our military around the world.”1 During his first seven months as president he focused his attention primarily on domestic affairs. That all changed over the succeeding twenty months. The United States waged wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. U.S. troops went to Georgia, the Philippines, and Yemen to help those governments defeat terrorist groups operating on their soil. Rather than cheering American humility, people and governments around the world denounced American arrogance. Critics complained that the motto of the United States had become oderint dum metuant—Let them hate as long as they fear. September 11 explains why foreign policy became the consuming passion of Bush’s presidency. Once commercial jetliners plowed into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, it is unimaginable that foreign policy wouldn’t have become the overriding priority of any American president. Still, the terrorist attacks by themselves don’t explain why Bush chose to respond as he did. Few Americans and even fewer foreigners thought in the fall of 2001 that attacks organized by Islamic extremists seeking to restore the caliphate would culminate in a war to overthrow the secular tyrant Saddam Hussein in Iraq. Yet the path from the smoking ruins in New York City and Northern Virginia to the battle of Baghdad was not the case of a White House cynically manipulating a historic catastrophe to carry out a pre-planned agenda.
    [Show full text]
  • Smart Defense and the Future of NATO: Can the Alliance Meet the Challenges of the Twenty-First Century?
    Smart Defense and the Future of NATO: Can the Alliance Meet the Challenges of the Twenty-First Century? March 28-30, 2012 Chicago, Illinois Conference Report and Expert Papers Dr. Lisa Aronsson and Dr. Molly O’Donnell Conference Report Coauthors Presented by The Chicago Council on Global Affairs This conference and publication were generously supported by: NATO Public Diplomacy Finmeccanica UK Ltd Robert Bosch Stiftung Consulate General of Canada in Chicago Saab Cooper Family Foundation Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung DePaul University NATO’s Inward Outlook: Global Burden Shifting Josef Braml Editor-in-Chief, DGAP Yearbook, German Council on Foreign Relations (DGAP) Abstract: While European NATO partners have their difficulties coping with economic problems, the dire eco- nomic and budgetary situation in the United States matters more for the alliance. We have become familiar with the challenges European members face in fulfilling their obligations. But we should understand that NATO’s lead nation, shouldering three-quarters of the alliance’s operating budget, is in deep economic, bud- getary, and political trouble. Hence the United States will seek ways to share the burden with partners inside and outside NATO. With the instrument of a “global NATO,” the United States continues to assert its values and interests worldwide. In addition to the transatlantic allies, democracies in Asia will be invited to contribute their financial and military share to establish a liberal world order. Domestic pressure: The power of the from Congress to check spending, would make it necessary for the commander in chief to find a way empty purse to cost-effectively balance the competing demands for resources in his new security strategy.
    [Show full text]
  • Iceland and “The Coalition of the Willing”
    UNIVERSITY OF AKUREYRI DEPARTMENT OF HUMANITIES AND SOCIAL SCIENCES FACULTY OF LAW, 2011 Iceland and “The Coalition Of The Willing” Was Iceland’s Declaration of Support Legal According to Icelandic Law? By, Hjalti Ómar Ágústsson 13 May 2011 Department of Humanities and Social Sciences BA Thesis UNIVERSITY OF AKUREYRI DEPARTMENT OF HUMANITIES AND SOCIAL SCIENCES FACULTY OF LAW, 2011 Iceland and “The Coalition Of The Willing” Was Iceland’s Declaration of Support Legal According to Icelandic Law? By, Hjalti Ómar Ágústsson 13/5/2011 Instructor: Rachael Lorna Johnstone Department of Humanities and Social Sciences Final Thesis Towards a BA Degree in Law (180 ECTS Credits) Declarations: I hereby declare that I am the sole author of this thesis and that it is the product of my own research. ____________________________ Hjalti Ómar Ágústsson It is hereby certified that in my judgment, this thesis fulfils the requirements for a B.A. degree at the Department of Humanities and Social Sciences. ________________________________ Dr. Rachael Lorna Johnstone i Abstract In a press briefing in the United States Department of State on 18 March 2003, Iceland‟s name appeared on a list of nations who were willing to support in one way or another an invasion into Iraq without explicit Security Council support or authorization. These states are commonly known as “The Coalition of the Willing”. Consequently Iraq was invaded on 20 March 2003 by four member states of the Coalition. The invasion was justified based on a combination of Security Council resolution 1441 and prior resolutions which together were interpreted as giving implied authorization, and on anticipatory self-defense based on Article 51 of the UN Charter.
    [Show full text]
  • Japan's ''Coalition of the Willing'
    Japan’s ‘‘Coalition of the Willing’’ on Security Policies by Robert Pekkanen and Ellis S. Krauss Robert Pekkanen ([email protected]) is assistant professor of international studies at the University of Washington. Ellis S. Krauss ([email protected]) is professor of interna- tional relations and Pacific studies at the University of California, San Diego. This paper is based on a paper presented at fpri’s January 27, 2005, conference, ‘‘Party Politics and Foreign Policy in East Asia,’’ held in Philadelphia. The authors thank Michael Strausz for his research assistance. n 1991, Japan was vilified by many for its ‘‘failure’’ to contribute boots on the ground to the U.S.-led Gulf War. Prime Minister Toshiki Kaifu (1989– I 91) found it difficult to gain support for any cooperation with the U.S.-led coalition in that conflict. Today, Japan’s Self-Defense Forces are stationed in a compound in Samuur, Iraq, part of President Bush’s ‘‘coalition of the willing,’’ and four of its destroyers are positioned in the Indian Ocean to aid the counterterrorism effort in Afghanistan. While many of the United States’ nato allies have been reluctant to aid current American security efforts, especially in Iraq, Japan has been among the staunchest supporters of American military ventures in the Middle East and of its stance toward North Korean nuclear development. As a result, Washington has moved from ‘‘bashing Japan’’ in the 1980s over trade policy and ‘‘passing Japan’’—ignoring it in favor of the rest of Asia—to lauding it for surpassing most of American’s other defense partners.
    [Show full text]
  • An Analysis of Kiribati, Nauru, Palau, Tonga, Tuvalu and Mauritius Thomas M
    Eastern Illinois University The Keep Masters Theses Student Theses & Publications 2004 Small-State Foreign Policy: An Analysis of Kiribati, Nauru, Palau, Tonga, Tuvalu and Mauritius Thomas M. Ethridge Eastern Illinois University This research is a product of the graduate program in Political Science at Eastern Illinois University. Find out more about the program. Recommended Citation Ethridge, Thomas M., "Small-State Foreign Policy: An Analysis of Kiribati, Nauru, Palau, Tonga, Tuvalu and Mauritius" (2004). Masters Theses. 1325. https://thekeep.eiu.edu/theses/1325 This is brought to you for free and open access by the Student Theses & Publications at The Keep. It has been accepted for inclusion in Masters Theses by an authorized administrator of The Keep. For more information, please contact [email protected]. THESIS/FIELD EXPERIENCE PAPER REPRODUCTION CERTIFICATE TO: Graduate Degree Candidates (who have written formal theses) SUBJECT: Permission to Reproduce Theses The University Library is receiving a number of request from other institutions asking permission to reproduce dissertations for inclusion in their library holdings. Although no copyright laws are involved, we feel that professional courtesy demands that permission be obtained from the author before we allow these to be copied. PLEASE SIGN ONE OF THE FOLLOWING STATEMENTS: Booth Library of Eastern Illinois University has my permission to lend my thesis to a reputable college or university for the purpose of copying it for inclusion in that · dings. ~Ju } oy Oat~ 1 I respectfully request Booth Library of Eastern Illinois University NOT allow my thesis to be reproduced because: Author's Signature Date lhesis4.form SMALL-STATE FOREIGN POLICY: AN ANALYSIS OF KIRIBATI, NAURU, PALAU, TONGA, TUVALU AND MAURITIUS (TITLE) BY Thomas M.
    [Show full text]
  • Reexamining the US-Turkish Alliance
    Joshua W. Walker Reexamining the U.S.-Turkish Alliance The July 22, 2007, Turkish national elections instigated a series of political debates in Turkey about the role of the 60-year-old U.S. alliance and the future orientation of Turkish foreign policy. Does Turkey still need its U.S. alliance in a post–Cold War environment? Particularly after U.S. pres- sure on Turkey in 2003 to open a northern front in the war in Iraq, which the Turkish parliament rejected, and given how unpopular the United States has become in the Middle East and in Europe, is the alliance still valuable to An- kara today? Coupled with the deteriorating situation in Iraq and the constant threat of the Turkish use of force in northern Iraq, these debates have forced U.S.-Turkish relations onto the international scene. The severity of the es- trangement in relations has been consistently downplayed on both sides of the Atlantic, even while external factors such as Turkey’s floundering EU mem- bership process and regional differences over how to deal with Iraq have only exacerbated the problems in the alliance. The fallout from the Iraq war has now gone beyond a simple misunderstanding between the United States and Turkey and casts a dark shadow over future relations and the wider regional security structure of the Middle East. The emergence of the Justice and Development Party (AKP) as a political force in Turkish politics has coincided with this unprecedented estrangement in U.S.-Turkish relations. Although the 2002 elections allowed the AKP to form a single-party government, their legitimacy was disputed.
    [Show full text]