The 100th Anniversary of the Turkish Republic: its foreign policy yesterday, today and tomorrow

This October, the Republic of Türkiye celebrates its 100^th anniversary. Turkish foreign policy has changed much during the century. Mustafa Kemal Atatürk’s foundational principle was ‘Peace at home and peace abroad’, guiding a strategy of neutrality in international affairs that lasted until the final days of the Second World War. Key turning points thereafter were Türkiye joining Nato in 1952 and the signing of the ‘Ankara Agreement’ with the EU in 1963 that looked ahead to Türkiye’s becoming a member state. The post-war years also saw the rise to prominence of the Cyprus issue accompanied by an increase in tension between Athens and Ankara. The end of the Cold War, the two Gulf wars and the Arab Spring transformed the geopolitics of Türkiye’s region again and prompted Ankara to adopt a more active and interventionist approach to its neighbourhood. Under President Erdogan, Türkiye has pursued an quasi-independent strategic posture and, despite its NATO membership, developed closer ties with Russia. President Erdogan has also attempted to cultivate closer relations with African, Balkan and Middle Eastern countries while relations with the United States and European Union have become volatile, distant and transactional. Russia’ invasion of Ukraine presents a further challenge to Türkiye’s efforts to have productive relations with both the West and Russia. The panel of academic experts and foreign policy practitioners will discuss the course of Türkiye’s international posture during the first 100 years of the Republic, the heady mix of contemporary problems the country faces and the likely future course of Turkish foreign policy in the near and long term.