Is Turkey Powerful or Is It a Buffer Zone?

During the local elections, stability of Turkey’s growing economy was emphasized by PM Erdogan. He was always planting seeds into people’s mind that if his party is not voted for, people will suffer the economic consequences of this as they used to before. However, what I have brooded on recently is that “is Turkey’s stability in economy in the annual statistics because of its skilful administrators or is it because Turkey is wanted to be powerful by greater powers?”

In 2008 when an economic crisis broke out in Europe, PM Erdogan declared it had only touched slightly Turkish economy which was unusually more powerful than the bigger economies such as USA, Greece, and Italia. In 2011 he added that the crisis wouldn’t even touch the Turkish economy. Magically, Turkey wasn’t affected so much from the crisis unlike the one in 2001. If Turkey was a closed economy like China, it would make sense, but in a global economy like Turkey it is hard not to be affected from such a big crisis. Erdogan creates an idea in society’s mind that the economy is strong thanks to him. On the contrary, an economic corruption scandal broke out at the end of 2013. Four of the ministers in cabinet had to resign and opposition parties criticized Erdogan to dissemble the corruption of the ruling party. Someone from Persia is regarded as a person who manipulates Turkish economy. America declared they warned Turkey not to have close relations with Iran. Unfortunately, there is a blurred atmosphere now, since people don’t know what to believe. Is our economy powerful or full of corruption? Are we powerful or just a puppet of greater powers?

 

Mahir KAYNAK, a retired intelligence agent, asks the same question in one of his books. Is Turkey powerful because of skilful politicians and diplomats or is it because Turkey is wanted to be powerful by the West to be used as a "buffer zone" to protect the interests of other countries such as USA. The answer is unknown, but I think we might be so close to see it when the political turmoil is observed and analysed in Iraq, Syria, and Egypt. These countries are nothing but just pawns in a chess game played by America, Russia, China and Germany. What about Turkey? I think it is just a “knight " in this chess game, because it is the most secular country in Middle East which makes it the closest ally of Europe and America in the zone. Furthermore, there is no nation which wants to fight overzealously for the sake of their country and no people want to be martyrs as much as the Turkish.

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Cengiz Güler

Works Cited :

http://surveythelife.blogspot.com.tr/2013/07/grandsons-of-ottoman-turkey-and-its_22.html

http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/default.aspx?pageid=438&n=0727115250272-2011-07-27

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/dec/17/turkish-ministers-sons-arrested-corruption-investigation

http://www.timas.com.tr/kitaplar/politika/aktuel-siyaset/uc-iki-bir.aspx