Determinants of Turkish foreign policy: changing patterns and conjunctures during the Cold War

Abstract

I looked elsewhere at the structural determinants of Turkish foreign policy,' which included the factors that have traditionally influenced and shaped the foreign policy of Turkey from imperial times, through the inter-war years with Ataturk, to the present-day Republic. Thanks to these structural determinants and their strong influence upon Turkey, it has been able to display a remarkable degree of continuity in its foreign policy, in contrast to frequent internal changes. It is, to a large extent, due to these factors that Turkish foreign policy has been praised for its high degree of rationality, sense of responsibility, long term perspective, and 'realism found in few developing nations and far from universal even among the democracies of the West'.2 Yet, there are other factors that have affected Turkish foreign policy and its daily happenings. These conjunctural factors, the result of international and domestic changes over the years, have also helped to shape Turkey's contemporary foreign policy. Due to their dynamic and changeable character, however, they exerted a temporary influence on the country's foreign policy, especially on its implementation. But due to these factors, Turkey's foreign policy has undergone some rapid changes in its implementation, even if no major deviations have occurred in the ultimate national goals. These factors have modified the foreign policy of Turkey through the years to establish a better defined and more relevant foreign policy to meet the requirements of the contemporary world. Though there are several of them, this article will deal with only a few major conjunctural factors that have affected Turkey's foreign policy and its international environment. Bearing in mind that almost every happening in domestic or international politics could affect and change a country's foreign policy in one way or another, it is imperative to be selective. The selection of factors has been determined by the importance of the changes that they caused. In this respect, the most decisive reason for choosing