Assoc. Prof. Dr. Tuba Eldem (Fenerbahce University, Turkey)

Abstract:

The Russian war against Ukraine accelerates a long-standing transition to multipolarity, which has both material and ideational dimensions that manifest itself with a renewed geopolitical competition and normative contestation of liberal international order. The rising normative plurality, as well as growing contention between great powers over physical and non-physical linkages between geographies, polities, economies, and peoples, enhance the importance of rising middle powers and provide them more flexibility to oscillate between different great powers. Turkey has emerged as such an important swing player in the Russian-Ukrainian war leading to growing questions about its geopolitical orientation both inside and outside of NATO. In the context of the revitalized scholarly interest in middle powers, this study incorporates role theory to examine Turkey’s national role conception in the emerging world order as a non-traditional middle power. To do so, it analyzes campaign speeches and foreign policy vision documents delivered by the governing party during the 2023 presidential election campaign period. Additionally, Turkey’s institutional, military, digital, transport and energy connectivity with Euro-Atlantic and Eurasian powers have been examined to shed light on Turkey’s geostrategic positioning in Eurasia and Belt and Road Initiative 2.0.

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V Eurasian Research on Modern China and Eurasia Conference