The Future of NATO's Nuclear Weapons on Turkish Soil
By Richard Weitz (vol. 3, no. 7 of the Turkey Analyst)
One reason why Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu decided to skip this week’s Nuclear Security Summit in Washington is that Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan made clear that he planned to raise the issue of Israel’s covert nuclear weapons program at the meeting. The Israeli government has long refused to confirm its possession of its widely suspected nuclear arsenal. One irony of this development is that Turkey itself is commonly recognized as having dozens of nuclear weapons stored on its territory. The most profitable non-proliferation tool in Turkey’s case would be to assure Turks that they will play an essential role in NATO’s security policies and that their preferences will have a major impact in shaping the alliance’s nuclear policies.
Lessons from the Turkish-Armenian Protocols
By Joris Gjata (vol. 3, no. 7 of the Turkey Analyst)
The Turkish-Armenian reconciliation process, formalized with the signing of two Protocols on October 10, 2009, does not seem to be going anywhere. The failure to materialize the promises of opening the border and establishing diplomatic relations has complex reasons and crucial implications. There are important lessons to be drawn from the mistakes in this process not only for the Western political leaders but most importantly for Turkish and Armenian foreign policy makers.
Turkey's Constitutional Amendments: One Step Forward, Two Steps Back?
By Gareth H. Jenkins (vol. 3, no. 6 of the Turkey Analyst)
On March 22, Turkey’s ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) announced a package of 26 proposed changes to the country’s constitution, including a restructuring of the Constitutional Court and the Supreme Board of Prosecutors and Judges (HSYK). Hailed as a major step towards full democratization and the harmonization of Turkish legislation with the requirements for EU accession by AKP supporters, the constitutional amendments are conversely criticized by the party’s opponents as an attempt by the AKP to seize control of the judicial system.
The Turkish Nationalist Opposition and its Foreign Policy Views
By Halil M. Karaveli and M.K. Kaya (vol. 3, no. 6 of the Turkey Analyst)
Opinion polls in Turkey show that there is a very real possibility that the next general election may return one or two of the nationalist opposition parties, CHP and MHP to power. The nationalist opposition, together with strong resistance within the ruling AKP itself and the government’s mishandling of those initiatives, has in fact already helped force the AKP to abandon its openings to Armenia and to the Kurdish minority. A Turkey ruled by the secularist-nationalists would be more circumspect in its dealings with Muslim countries. Yet in a fundamental sense, the secularist-nationalists are, just like the current government, inclined to defy the West, strategically as well as ideologically.
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