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Assessing the Turkish Foreign Policy Crises and Crisis Management in the Republican Era^*

Fuat Aksu and Helin Sarı Ertem

Considering the currently marked rise that takes place both in the number and variety of actors the international community is made up of, a decision on an important matter is made almost at any moment by those in charge who have the authority to make decisions in the name the of state. For the sake of making the best possible decision for the country’s interests, the political decision-maker should often take multiple options and possibilities into consideration. In a democratic state, a decision made by a political decision-maker is supposed to have a political consequence. Therefore, with the decision that he/she makes, the political decision-maker shapes his/her political fate as well.

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Reflections of Beliefs and Worldviews of the Turkish Ruling Elite  on the Syria Crisis^*

Helin Sarı Ertem

Introduction

A crisis situation in foreign policy is a process that threatens national values and interests, and usually obliges the decision-makers to make their decisions in a rapid way. It can also lead to a problem of survival for the states, if not well-managed. The basic aim in the crisis management is to protect the national targets and interests without going to a war.^[1] In the international relations, a crisis is a situation of disagreement, which is possible to solve but can also turn into a war.^[2] With these characteristics, the recent Turkey-Syria tension, which has been going on since the beginning of the Syrian civil war in 2011, can also be considered as a crisis situation that, in the eyes of the Turkish decision makers, threatens Turkey’s national interests and even survival. It is closely related not only to the changing regional circumstances but also the domestic and systemic factors.