Number of results to display per page
Search Results
15142. Economic Regulatory Reform in the Natural Gas Market in Turkey: Accession to the European Union and Future Gas Projects
- Author:
- Zeynep Karacor and Abdulkadir Develi
- Publication Date:
- 04-2007
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- Insight Turkey
- Institution:
- SETA Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research
- Abstract:
- Energy is considered to be a prime agent in the generation of wealth and significant factor in economic development. The importance of energy is recognized almost universally. And the historical data attest to a strong relationship between the availability of energy and economic activity. Therefore it is believed that if a country reaches to energy before others it can find more opportunities to develop than others. Especially in recent years natural gas has an important place among the other energy sources because of the economic and environmental dimensions. In other words, energy is a unique commodity; it plays an essential role for economic development, human dignity and the environment. All of these reasons have been explained to find an answer to why active participation of citizens, transparent structure and democratic control is necessary.
- Political Geography:
- Turkey and Nepal
15143. Foreign Direct Investment in the Middle East: Major Regulatory Restrictions
- Author:
- Svitlana Khyeda
- Publication Date:
- 04-2007
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- Insight Turkey
- Institution:
- SETA Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research
- Abstract:
- This article focuses on the comparative analysis of major regulatory restrictions on foreign investment in Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Turkey, countries that are representative of the Muslim Middle East: the Egyptian legal system has served as a pattern for many of the Middle Eastern countries, Shari'a is the primary source of law in Saudi Arabia as in some other Middle Eastern countries and Turkey is a Muslim secular state which adopted more modern version of the civil code system.
- Political Geography:
- Middle East, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt
15144. Turkey: A Major Regional Power to Engage or Confront Iran
- Author:
- Mehmet Ogutcu
- Publication Date:
- 04-2007
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- Insight Turkey
- Institution:
- SETA Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research
- Abstract:
- Turkey, Iran's next door neighbor, long-standing historic rival and the largest military/economic power in the region, remains the only country, which can genuinely engage or confront Iran in the region (Middle East, Caspian basin, and Central Asia). This holds particularly true at a time when speculations have intensified about a possible U.S./Israeli air strike or more targeted sanctions against Iran due to the nuclear standoff with the West.
- Political Geography:
- Iran and Turkey
15145. Turkey's EU accession as a question of nation brand image
- Author:
- Jan Dirk Kemming and Ozlem Sandikci
- Publication Date:
- 04-2007
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- Insight Turkey
- Institution:
- SETA Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research
- Abstract:
- Despite the significance of politics and public diplomacy for nation brands, there is little research on the topic. The study seeks to contribute to the literature by investigating Turkey's European Union (EU) accession, which seems endangered by negative public opinion in other EU member states, as a case to understand how nation brand images can influence a given course of action in international politics. Specifically, through an exploratory qualitative research, the content of Turkey's nation brand image, its antecedents, and potential consequences within the political context of the country's accession negotiation are explored. The findings suggest that Turkey, at the moment, does not appear to be a well-run nation brand. Not only do the poor results indicate room for improvement, but also the management of Turkey in all relevant nation brand dimensions does not seem promising with regard to a successful EU application process. Furthermore, the analysis point to a truly complicated positioning dilemma for Turkey's nation brand and the challenge of accomplishing an integrated nation brand management.
- Topic:
- Politics
- Political Geography:
- Turkey
15146. China and Russia: Common Interests, Contrasting Perceptions
- Author:
- Bobo Lo
- Publication Date:
- 04-2007
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- Insight Turkey
- Institution:
- SETA Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research
- Abstract:
- President Vladimir Putin's visit to China in March 2006 was in many respects a spectacular success. The Russian delegation was the largest and most diverse in post-Soviet times. The number of agreements, 29, represented a record in the history of the relationship. And the atmosphere was the most positive of any of Putin's overseas trips. Surveying the landscape of the relationship, there seems nothing not to like. The 4,300 km common border has finally been demarcated in its entirety; Moscow and Beijing agree on practically every regional and international issue of consequence – Chechnya, Taiwan, Iraq, Iran. Official trade has multiplied nearly six-fold during Putin's presidency; and the first ever Sino-Russian joint military exercises took place in August 2005.
- Political Geography:
- Russia, China, Iraq, Iran, Taiwan, Beijing, Soviet Union, Chechnya, and Moscow
15147. Stuck in Two Overlapping Neighborhoods: Dilemmas of Kyiv's European Integration and Russian-Ukrainian Relations
- Author:
- Igor Torbakov
- Publication Date:
- 04-2007
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- Insight Turkey
- Institution:
- SETA Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research
- Abstract:
- Ukraine's Orange Revolution, its leaders contend, was primarily pro-European, not anti-Russian. But most commentators both in the West and in Russia look at the 2004 dramatic events in Kyiv differently: they tend to characterize them as a clear manifestation of Ukraine's strategic, if not civilizational, choice. Within this paradigm, opting for a "European path" would mean undermining what the Kremlin perceives as its vital national interests.
- Political Geography:
- Russia, Europe, and Ukraine
15148. Berlin's Russia Challenge
- Author:
- Angela Stent
- Publication Date:
- 04-2007
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- Insight Turkey
- Institution:
- SETA Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research
- Abstract:
- Russia has found an innovative way to ring in the New Year with its European partners: threatening to cut off energy supplies. At the beginning of 2006, it was gas exports through Ukraine; in January 2007, it was oil supplies through Belarus. Although President Lukashenko backed down and oil again flowed to Europe, the actions of pipeline monopoly Transneft –and President Putin's failure to inform Germany about the impending cutoff– presented German Chancellor Angela Merkel with an unwelcome start to Germany's EU presidency.
- Topic:
- Oil
- Political Geography:
- Russia, Europe, Ukraine, Germany, and Berlin
15149. Presidential Politics of Turkey: The View from Rural Communities
- Author:
- Naoise MacSweeney
- Publication Date:
- 07-2007
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- Insight Turkey
- Institution:
- SETA Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research
- Abstract:
- Dramatic, controversial, and fiercely fought, the Turkish elections of 2007 marked a pivotal point in the administration of the ruling AK Party, and, it has been suggested, for Turkey as a whole. The presidential race in particular triggered a storm of academic and media discussion, and stimulated large-scale popular responses such as mass demonstrations in several urban centres. Amid such high-level interest, relatively little attention has been paid to the perspectives of small, rural communities on the issue. Although they represent an important section of the electorate, the views of such communities are rarely researched in detail, and are not always shaped by religious and cultural issues as is often assumed. Interviews carried out over the election period suggest that the rural electorate hold much more complex views concerning presidential politics than has been widely supposed, and point to a more nuanced interpretation of 'political Islam' than is usually implied by the term.
- Topic:
- Islam and Politics
- Political Geography:
- Turkey
15150. Learning Strategic Depth: Implications of Turkey's New Foreign Policy Doctrine
- Author:
- Joshua W. Walker
- Publication Date:
- 07-2007
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- Insight Turkey
- Institution:
- SETA Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research
- Abstract:
- Turkey stands at the threshold of all major trends within its neighborhood and is actively seeking to harness the assets that its geography and historical experiences afford it. As a staunch ally of the United States which has traditionally privileged its "strategic partnership," Turkey's global role has shifted from being a Western geo-strategic military deterrent to an exemplary model of a Muslim-majority, secular, and democratic nation. This article offers an introduction to Turkey's new foreign policy doctrine known as "strategic depth" and then seeks to examine its implications for Turkey's emerging role in Europe, the Middle East, Russia, and Central Asia. In the following sections, this article will outline how Turkey is beginning to realize its full potential as a versatile multiregional and increasingly powerful international actor.
- Topic:
- Foreign Policy
- Political Geography:
- Russia, United States, Europe, Central Asia, Turkey, and Middle East