Facing its Waterloo in diplomacy: Turkey's military in the foreign policy-making process

2009 ◽  
Vol 40 ◽  
pp. 83-102 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gencer Özcan

AbstractThe article deals with the decline in the military's influence on the foreign and security policy making process in Turkey. Turkey's harmonization process with the EU that gained momentum in the early 2000s and the US invasion of Iraq in April of 2003 seem to have played a key role in this transformation. While the EU reforms provided for the gradual elimination of legal prerogatives of the military, the increasing US influence in Iraq limited the military's operational power and led to a situation in which it could not exert influence in Northern Iraq, a key area for Turkeys security.

Author(s):  
Helen Wallace ◽  
Mark A. Pollack ◽  
Alasdair R. Young

This text examines the processes that produce policies in the European Union — that is, the decisions (or non-decisions) by EU public authorities facing choices between alternative courses of public action. It considers the broad contours of the EU policy-making process and relevant analytical approaches for understanding that process. It includes case studies dealing with the main policy domains in which the EU dimension is significant, including competition policy, the common agricultural policy (CAP), the economic and monetary union (EMU), enlargement, common foreign and security policy (CFSP), justice and home affairs (JHA), and energy and social policy. This chapter discusses the significant developments that have impacted EU policy-making since the sixth edition, summarizes the text’s collective approach to understanding policy-making in the EU, and provides an overview of the chapters that follow.


IG ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 42 (2) ◽  
pp. 118-133
Author(s):  
Daniel Schade

The Interparliamentary Conference for the Common Foreign and Security Policy and the Common Security and Defence Policy (IPC) is a new parliamentary body set up after the Treaty of Lisbon which allows to create interlinkages between parliaments in the European Union (EU). It is part of an ongoing process which aims to challenge the executive dominance in EU policy-making in general and in the EU’s foreign and security policy in particular. Considering its sessions and the experiences of members of parliaments partaking in the Interparliamentary Conference to date, this article analyses its value-added to this overarching goal. The experiences so far suggest that the IPC faces significant practical challenges in contributing to the parliamentary scrutiny of the policy areas concerned despite the fact that the format of interparliamentary gatherings is a significant innovation in its own right. These challenges arise primarily out of a conflict between the European Parliament and national parliaments in the EU, the diversity of national parliamentarism, as well as the differing moti⁠v­a⁠tions and skills of the participating members of parliaments.


2013 ◽  
Vol 46 (3) ◽  
pp. 363-372 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kerry Longhurst

The past 20 years have seen profound shifts in Polish foreign and security policy. Like other states in Central Europe Poland became part of the Euro-Atlantic sphere upon gaining first NATO and then EU membership. Despite such broad similarities, Poland’s trajectory since 1989 has been marked by some specific and defining features. Poland has become the most significant player in Central Europe and tends to be viewed in the region as a leader, twinned with this, due to its size and relative strength, Poland is taken seriously at the EU table. At the same time, there has been a palpable shift in Polish Atlanticism and a more skeptical view of the US has emerged. This article explores the sources of these reconfigurations and considers their potential implications.


2003 ◽  
Vol 55 (2) ◽  
pp. 186-202 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sofija Siriski

Constructive and cooperative European Union and NATO relations are very important for global stability. But today transatlantic relation are in crisis and there is some evidence that the growing number of the disputes, including over Iraq, the Israel-Palestine conflict, dealing with "rogue states" and terrorism, are having a major impact on European foreign and security policy, and even the process of European integration. NATO adapted well after the end of the Cold War but since September 11th, however, NATO has faced something of an existential crisis. The US chose to fight the Afghan and Iraq war largely on its own, alongside European allies. Many American are stressing that NATO can only remain relevant if it is prepared and able to tackle pressing international terrorism and the spread of weapons of mass destruction. To safeguard NATO's future role the US has proposed that the European allies should help to develop a Rapid Response Force inside NATO. It wants the EU to provide troops that would be able to operate alongside America's forces. European, meanwhile, have their own set of concerns. The EU has no concept of how to deal with the world's only superpower. Too often there is a preference for bilateral as opposed to EU channels, and because of that the EU urgently needs a security strategy. The lack of a coherent EU foreign policy also inhibits the ability of the EU and if the Europeans can build a more coherent foreign policy, the US will have a greater interest in listening to what they say. EU leaders also need to assess the suitability of the EU's military doctrine and institutions for the challenges it faces. The transformation of transatlantic co-operation requires changes on both sides. Differences between the US and Europe exist but they should not be exaggerated. What is needed is to broaden the transatlantic dialogue to include the critical security challenges for both sides.


2020 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. p1
Author(s):  
Abdolreza Alishahi ◽  
Hamid Soleimani Souchelmaei

These days, Trump’s actions have topped regional and world news. His new contracts for the sale of military weapons have created a wave of concern over the growing number of weapons in the world. The Trump administration has been drawing attention since coming in with repeated claims of direct entry into the military. By first proposing a safe zone in Syria, he sought to justify direct US presence in the West Asian region, which made modifications to his plan with Russian and Iranian opposition. Given Washington’s growing difficulty in entering the Syrian military, Trump has chosen a new option for the US body in the region, in which Trump has ordered the use of American drones to bomb various areas of Yemen under the pretext of combating Yemen. Al-Qaeda has given up. The main research question is what is the strategic importance of Yemen in Trump’s foreign and security policy? The findings of the study show that Trump, with goals such as tearing loops of resistance, removing Iran from regional equations and preventing the spread of Shi’ite waves to Saudi Arabia, took a tough and forceful approach to the developments in Yemen. He is reluctant to boycott American power in the region by engaging in showmanship and, with a business-minded and profit-driven view of Yemen, is pouring Western weapons stockpiles with Arab reactionary dollars into the region. The research method is descriptive-analytical based on aggressive realism.


Author(s):  
Simon Duke

The European Union’s Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) is scarcely two decades old, yet a considerable and diverse body of literature has emerged during this time. CSDP can best be thought of as the functional crisis management end of the Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP), of which it is an integral part. It covers both the military and civilian aspects of crisis management, with the majority of overseas missions being civilian in nature. Yet, it is the growth of the military dimension that has spurred extensive debate about the nature of the EU’s actorness and whether it can still be thought of as a civilian power par excellence. Much of the research has been driven by the application of the main theoretical approaches in international relations to CSDP. The result is an extensive, but occasionally cacophonous, body of literature. Given the relative youth of CSDP there are inevitably gaps in the literature, especially the question of how CSDP relates to other policy fields in the external relations of the EU and whether the “D” in CSDP will remain indefinitely silent.


2003 ◽  
Vol 55 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 339-353 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dejan Gajic

After the end of World War II leaders of the West European countries had realised the necessity to create new security frameworks, thus making the security of the continent the concern of the Europeans themselves. However, immediately after it had been formed the North Atlantic Alliance, as a trans-Atlantic defence shield against the danger from the "communist East", became the central security component in Europe. Just after the end of the Cold War and disappearance of the "danger from the East" the European leaders initiated the process of creation of the new European defence system. The system would be designed in such a way not to jeopardise the position of the NATO, improving at the same time the security and stability in the continent. In the first part of the article the author considers the course of European integration in the second half of the last century that proceeded through creation of institutions preceding the establishment of the European Union. During the period of creation of this specific form of action performed by the European states at the internal and international levels, the deficiency of integration in the military field was notable. In that regard, the author stresses the role of the Western European Union as an alliance for collective defence of West European countries. The second part of the paper discusses the shaping of the EU security component through the provisions on the Common Foreign and Security Policy, which are included in the EU agreements. The Maastricht Treaty defined the Common Foreign and Security Policy as an instrument to reach agreement by member states in the defence field. The Amsterdam Treaty confirmed the role of this mechanism expanding the authorities resulting from it. The Treaty of Nice supplements the existing mechanism by a new military and political structure that should help implement the decisions made by the European Union institutions in the military field. In the third part of the article, the author presents the facts concerning the establishment and internal organisation of the Eurocorps. The creation of this military formation took place in early 1990s and was initiated by the two states of "the old Europe" - Germany and France. The authors also emphasises that the establishment of this formation is the first step towards creation of the armed forces in Europe. The fourth part of the paper treats the Rapid Reaction Force that was established by the Helsinki Agreement (1999). It became operative in early 2003 and its basic aim is to prevent the outbreak of crises in the region and to improve stability in Europe. In spite of the opinions that the establishment of such a force is the skeleton for creation of the European armed forces, the author thinks that, at least in the near future, they will not be a rival to the NATO. In his opinion, their possible military missions will be carried out only when the alliance takes no interest in being engaged in them.


2020 ◽  
Vol 26 (1) ◽  
pp. 9-28
Author(s):  
Mato Brautović

This study examines the debate on net neutrality in the Croatian public sphere, its origin and connection to similar debates in the United States and the EU. The study also tries to answer who the policy actors that influence the NN debate are, how the policy-making process concerning this topic was carried out in Croatia, and what the role of the mainstream media is. Empirical data was collected from documents and posts regarding net neutrality found on government, media, NGO and industry websites. The findings show that there are two parallel debates on net neutrality and the character of the Croatian policy-making process: the debate that is going on in the mainstream and online media, where international topics and actors (the US, the EU) dominate, and the debate that is happening in the Croatian public sphere, which is carried out as part of panels and conferences (mainly organised by the Croatian Regulatory Authority for Network Industries). Although the mainstream media reported positively about net neutrality, they have failed to bring the process of policy-making and the corresponding debate closer to the general public, as was the case in the US or Western Europe.


Author(s):  
Maria José Rangel de Mesquita

The article addresses the issue of judicial control of the implementation of Common Foreign and Security Policy at international regional level within the framework of the relaunching of the negotiation in view of the accession of the EU to the ECHR. Considering the extent of jurisdiction of the CJEU in respect of Common Foreign and Security Policy field in the light of its case law (sections 1 and 2), it analyses the question of judicial review of Common Foreign and Security Policy within international regional justice by the ECtHR in the light of the ongoing negotiations (section 3), in the perspective of the relationship between non-national courts (section 3.A), having as background the (2013) Draft Agreement of accession (section 3.B.1). After addressing the relaunching of the negotiation procedure (section 3.B.2) and the issue of CFSP control by the ECtHR according to the recent (re)negotiation meetings (section 3.B.3), some concrete proposals, including for the redrafting of the accession agreement, will be put forward (section 3.B.4), as well as a conclusion (section 4).


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