What challenges does Türkiye face in the post-western world? – First part

According to the international group Tasnim news agency, many experts of relations between The international community in Turkey believes that the world is on the threshold of a huge diplomatic transformation and the Al-Aqsa storm attack will change many balances. will be accompanied and Turkey, as one of the countries that is heavily affected by the consequences of regional tensions, must clarify its duty with international coalitions.

Experts and think tanks Various people in Turkey discuss the issue of why Turkey, as a NATO member country and a candidate for joining the European Union, has faced the indifference of America and Europe on the one hand, and on the other hand, is on the path of friendship and establishing strategic relations with Russia and China have not reached full certainty either.

Although part of the discussion of Turkey’s relations with the Eastern and Western worlds has a precise and direct relationship with the competition of Turkish parties, and Erdogan’s opponents mainly want development. are related to the West, but academic analysis, beyond the competition of several parties, deals with the strategic approach of countries and their national interests, and for this reason, this type of analysis deserves more attention and reflection.

One ​​of the experts who is concerned about the nature of Erdogan’s government’s political attitude towards the East and West of the world is a famous academician named Professor Fouad Kayman.

From Kayman’s point of view Turkey’s foreign policy approach regarding the East and West of the world is unclear and undecided, and this country has faced 8 important diplomatic dilemmas.

Professor Kayman, vice president and faculty member of Sabanji University, director of a think tank in Named “Istanbul Policy Center” (IPC) and a member of the Turkish Academy of Sciences. Globalization, international relations, civil society and government-society relations are taking place in Turkey. He is the author of an important book entitled: “Hegemony through Transformation: Foreign Policy, Identity and Democracy in Turkey”. The post-western world has commented on the position of Turkey in the new balance of the world:

The post-western world, strategic independence and politics Foreign Turkey

Extensive research on the types of dangers and risks in the world in 2024 and the near future, shows the prominence of two important variables. One of them is war and the other is climate crisis. Also, “inequality” and “difficulty in providing living expenses”, which were previously in the first two ranks, this time are in the third and fourth ranks. This trend is related to important concepts such as “food security” and “violence-poverty-deprivation spiral”. Um, war and climate crisis are the most important risks in the world that not only have a destructive effect on the security of the government, but more importantly on human security, environmental security and life security in general. Because the war and the climate crisis cause the feeling of “uncertainty”, “distrust” and “anxiety”, social and individual psychology are strongly affected.

Since 2022, we have witnessed the continuation of the war between Russia and Ukraine, and now following the Israeli-Palestinian war from October 7, 2023, we are facing the risk of genocide in Gaza and the risk of violence spreading to Yemen, the Red Sea, Iran, Lebanon and the region. It is being talked about.

The wars that happened before in Iraq and Syria, Azerbaijan-Armenia, the Balkans and different parts of the world have preserved their effects and consequences until now. On the other hand, not only 2023, but the last 10 years will be the hottest year and period that the world has ever experienced. Greece, Libya, Haiti and Turkey are experiencing, war and climate crisis have become the biggest danger. Moreover, we are practically experiencing the end of the post-1945 Western-centered liberal order.

This order is now old and obsolete: no American hegemon left, no transatlantic alliance. Consisting of America-Europe and not international institutions and the UN Security Council, they cannot shape global policy and solve problems.

Let’s accept that we are now in a We live in a post-western world. The balance of power and influence in the relations of the Western world as well as outside the West is changing, the world is becoming multi-polar, multi-cluster, multi-axis, but at the same time, neither China nor the non-Western world is the global leader or hegemon. or are not regional. Even though the previous security system is obsolete, we still don’t know what the coordinates of the new system are. Maybe we are in a “transition” period in the international system.

Two arguments to prove the collapse of the liberal system >

The events of recent weeks make us face this question: if the liberal system still has the possibility and power to rule in the world, then why is it against politics There is no obstacle to Israel’s intentional and conscious genocide and ethnic cleansing of Gaza’s civilians after the terrorist attack by Hamas on October 7, and we continue to see the unconditional support of Western governments, including the United States, Germany, and England, for the genocidal policy. ?

Wasn’t it supposed to be based on the principles of liberalism and free market, they should stand against such crimes and defend the need to pay attention to human rights and democracy? This is one of the clear arguments and documents that show that there is no such thing as liberalism left. I think that October 7 and what happened on a large scale of genocide in Gaza not only marked the decline and end of the Western-centered liberal order after 1945, but also caused serious damage to the West and the idea of ​​Western modernity.

But my second argument is as follows: if we look at the scene of political competition and the alignment of groups and currents, we see that far-right and racist parties and leaders continue to gain power in the West and Probably, they will win again in the elections that will be held this year in different countries and institutions. This means that the post-western world is also emerging in the west and there is no place left for discourses defending democracy and globalization.

Weakening of democracy and strengthening of cultural-descent racist thinking. , as a result of the increasing spread and deepening of a kind of fascism in the West, it is very worrying. This is more than a deviation from democracy to tyranny. The current situation pushes the world further towards the dangerous spiral of mistrust-anxiety. Is it the West?

When we talk about the decline of the world based on the hegemony of the West, this does not necessarily mean that the opposite point is the Eastern countries. , are gaining power and their problems will be solved with the decline of the West, no. In a general assessment and result, we can clearly see that the gradual weakening of democracy in the West and outside the West are happening together.

So Turkey as a country Due to its geographical and political location, it is involved in both the eastern and western developments of the world, it must be able to understand and analyze such facts correctly:

A) We are witnessing a transitional period and a political and historical transition, and the previous system is practically obsolete.

c) We do not fully know how the post-Western world will be shaped. So we have to think about this issue and reach a clear answer.

In light of the correct and clear understanding of the above propositions, we can understand the position of Turkey in Understand and explain the new world order correctly. In the current situation, it seems that the responsible agents and leaders in Turkey’s foreign policy and their supporters have accepted the idea of ​​a post-Western world without much analysis and bargaining, and even strongly support the validity of this hypothesis.

They think that the post-Western world is in Turkey’s favor and this global situation increases Turkey’s importance. But the reality is that Turkey also has problems and obstacles to enter this new path, and we must properly understand the regional and extra-regional conditions of Turkey in the new world order.

In the next part of this note, we will discuss the eight problems of Turkey’s foreign policy in the new world.

Continues…

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