Foreign Policy as Performance: Contesting Europe in Turkey’s 2017 Referendum

Year 2026, Volume: 4 Issue: 1 , 1 - 21 , 29.04.2026

Begum Zorlu

https://izlik.org/JA84ZU89BA

Abstract

In what ways do contestatory foreign policy practices contribute to regime consolidation under populist rule? Using Turkey’s 2017 constitutional referendum as a case study, this article examines how elites from the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) deployed a contestatory framing strategy to politicise relations with Europe during a period of heightened domestic competition. By analysing elite discourse across public rallies, official statements, opinion columns, and state-aligned media, the study reveals how European restrictions on diaspora campaigning were framed as threats to Turkish sovereignty and national interests. Through a set of interlocking contestatory frames centred on hypocrisy, civilisational threat, and resentment, Europe was constructed as an antagonistic external actor seeking to obstruct Turkey’s political transformation. This framing enabled the securitisation of opposition to constitutional reform, recasting political dissent as alignment with foreign interference rather than as legitimate democratic disagreement. The article contributes to debates on populist foreign policy and contestation in international politics by showing how persistent contestation towards external actors functions as a performative strategy, shaping political meaning and marginalising opposition. At the same time, it demonstrates the limits of foreign policy performance as a standalone mechanism of regime consolidation.

Keywords

Contestatory framing , populist foreign policy , contestation , foreign policy , AKP , Turkey

References

• Aiolfi, T. (2025) The Populist Style: Trump, Le Pen and Performances of the Far Right. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press.
• Ak Parti (2002) 2002 Genel Seçimleri Seçim Beyannamesi. Available at: https://www.akparti.org.tr/media/318780/3-kasim-2002-genel-secimleri-secim-beyannamesi-sayfalar.pdf (Accessed: 27 December 2024).
• Akçay, Ü. (2018) “Neoliberal populism in Turkey and its crisis,” IPE Working Papers, Berlin: Berlin School of Economics and Law. Available at: https://www.ipe-berlin.org/fileadmin/institut-ipe/Dokumente/Working_Papers/IPE_WP_100.pdf (Accessed: 27 December 2024).
• Akkoyunlu, K. and Kerem Öktem (2016) “Existential insecurity and the making of a weak authoritarian regime in Turkey,” Southeast European and Black Sea Studies, 16(4), 505–527.
• Alden, C. (2017) “Critiques of the Rational Actor Model and Foreign Policy Decision Making”, in Thompson, W.R. and Capelos, T. (eds.) Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Politics. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
• Alden, C. and Amnon Aran (2012) Foreign Policy Analysis: New Approaches, Abingdon: Routledge.
• Anadolu Ajansı (2017a) “Europe Banned Turkish Yes Campaigners in Referendum” Available at: https://www.aa.com.tr/en/europe/europe-banned-turkish-yes-campaigners-in-referendum/801006 (Accessed: 25 December 2025). Anadolu Ajansı (2017b) “Europe Says No to Freedom of Speech.” Available at: https://www.aa.com.tr/en/europe/europe-says-no-to-freedom-of-speech/769118 (Accessed: 25 December 2025).
• Anadolu Ajansı (2017c) ‘Turkish FM Criticizes Netherlands over Rally Ban’ Available at: https://www.aa.com.tr/en/politics/-turkish-fm-criticizes-netherlands-over-rally-ban/763868 (Accessed: 25 December 2025).
• Aydın-Düzgit, S. (2023) “Authoritarian middle powers and the liberal order: Turkey’s contestation of the EU,” International Affairs, 99(6), 2319–2337.
• Bettiza, G. and David Lewis (2020) “Authoritarian Powers and Norm Contestation in the Liberal International Order: Theorising the Power Politics of Ideas and Identity,” Journal of Global Security Studies 5 (4), 559–77.
• BBC News (2017) ‘Turkey referendum grants President Erdoğan sweeping new powers’ Available at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-39617700 (Accessed: 4 January 2026).
• Boscarino, J. (2016) “Setting the Record Straight: Frame Contestation as an Advocacy Tactic,” Policy Studies Journal, 44 (3), 280-308.
• Connolly, K. (2017) ‘Recep Tayyip Erdoğan: Germany is aiding and abetting terrorism’, The Guardian, Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/mar/03/bomb-threat-german-gaggenau-town-hall-cancellation-turkish-rally (Accessed: 4 January 2026).
• Çakır, A. and Gül Arıkan Akdağ (2016) “An Empirical Analysis of the Change in Turkish Foreign Policy under the AKP Government,” Turkish Studies, 18 (2), 334–357.
• Çevik, İ. (2017) ‘Terrorist groups are waging "no" campaign against Turkey's constitutional reform’, Daily Sabah. Available at: https://www.dailysabah.com/columns/ilnur-cevik/2017/02/08/terrorist-groups-are-waging-no-campaign-against-turkeys-constitutional-reform (Accessed: 4 January 2026).
• Daily Sabah. (2017a) ‘Erdoğan Slams Netherlands, Hints Retaliation over Revoke of FM’s Landing Permit.’ Available at: https://www.dailysabah.com/diplomacy/2017/03/11/erdogan-slams-netherlands-hints-retaliation-over-revoke-of-fms-landing-permit (Accessed: 4 January 2026).
• Daily Sabah (2017b) ‘German Authorities Controversially Ban Turkish Ministers from Meeting Citizens in Rally.’ Available at: https://www.dailysabah.com/eu-affairs/2017/03/02/german-authorities-controversially-ban-turkish-ministers-from-meeting-citizens-in-rally (Accessed: 25 December 2024).
• Destradi, S. and Johannes Plagemann (2019) “Populism and International Relations: (Un)Predictability, Personalisation, and the Reinforcement of Existing Trends in World Politics,” Review of International Studies 45 (5), 711–30.
• DW (2017) ‘Erdoğan'dan Avrupa'ya: "Faşistsiniz, faşist!"’, 26 March. Available at: https://www.dw.com/tr/erdoğandan-avrupaya-faşistsiniz-faşist/a-38125834 (Accessed: 25 December 2024).
• Ekim, S. and Kemal Kirişci (2017) ‘The Turkish Constitutional Referendum, Explained.’ Brookings. Available at: https://www.brookings.edu/articles/the-turkish-constitutional-referendum-explained/ (Accessed: 25 December 2024).
• Esen, B. and Sebnem Gümüşcü (2016) “Rising competitive authoritarianism in Turkey,” Third World Quarterly, 37(9), 1581-1606.
• Esen, B. and Sebnem Gümüşcü (2017) “A Small Yes for Presidentialism: The Turkish Constitutional Referendum of April 2017,” South European Society and Politics, 22(3), 303-326.
• Euronews (2017) ‘How Europe Is Being Used in the Turkish Referendum Campaign.’ Available at: https://www.euronews.com/2017/04/11/how-europe-is-being-used-in-the-turkish-referendum-campaign (Accessed: 25 December 2024).
• Göksel, O. (2019) “Foreign Policy Making in the Age of Populism: The Uses of Anti-Westernism in Turkish Politics,” New Middle Eastern Studies, 9 (1), 13–35.
• Gökmenoğlu, B. (2022) “Politics of Anticipation: Turkey’s 2017 Constitutional Referendum and the Local ‘No’ Assemblies in Istanbul,” Social Movement Studies, 23(4), 446–461.
• Habertürk. (2017) ‘Erdoğan: Gerekirse idam için de referandum yapabiliriz.’ Available at: https://www.haberturk.com/gundem/haber/1402842-erdogan-manisada-konustu-gerekirse-idam-icin-de-referandum-yapabiliriz (Accessed: 21 February 2026).
• Hansen, L. (2006) Security as practice: discourse analysis and the Bosnian war. London: Routledge.
• Henley, J. (2017) ‘Turkey Threatens to Pull out of Migrant Deal as Dutch Row Intensifies’, The Guardian. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/mar/13/turkey-summons-dutch-envoy-over-riot-police-tactics-in-rotterdam?utm (Accessed: 21 February 2026).
• Hill, C. (2003) The Changing Politics of Foreign Policy. New York: Palgrave Macmillan.
• Hürriyet Daily News (2017a) ‘Hollande, Merkel to Turkey: Respect Our Law in Referendum Campaign Events.’ Available at: https://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/hollande-merkel-to-turkey-respect-our-law-in-referendum-campaign-events--110913 (Accessed: 21 February 2026).
• Hürriyet Daily News (2017b) ‘Turkey Says It Does Not Want Dutch Envoy to Return to Post for a While.’ Available at: https://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/turkey-says-itdoes-not-want-dutch-envoy-to-return-to-post-for-a-while-110695 (Accessed: 21 February 2026).
• Kalın, İ. (2017) ‘Turkey, Europe and a Narrowing Horizon’, Daily Sabah. Available at: https://www.dailysabah.com/columns/ibrahim-kalin/2017/03/14/turkey-europe-and-a-narrowing-horizon (Accessed: 21 February 2026).
• Kaliber, A. and Esra Kaliber (2019) “From De-Europeanisation to Anti-Western Populism: Turkish Foreign Policy in Flux,” International Spectator, 54 (4), 1–16.
• Kaarbo, J. (2015) “A Foreign Policy Analysis Perspective on the Domestic Politics Turn in IR Theory,” International Studies Review, 17(2), 189–216.
• Kendall-Taylor, A. and Erica Frantz (2018) How Democracies Fall Apart. Foreign Affairs. Available at: https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/2016-12-05/how-democracies-fall-apart (Accessed: 21 February 2026)
• Kıvanç, Ü. (2016) Pan-İslâmcının macera kılavuzu: Davutoğlu ne diyor, bir şey diyor mu? İstanbul: İletişim Yayınları. Middle East Eye. (2017) ‘Turkey accuses Germany of working against Erdoğan.’ Available at: https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/turkey-accuses-germany-working-against-erdogan (Accessed: 25 December 2024).
• Moffitt, B. (2016) The Global Rise of Populism: Performance, Political Style, and Representation, Stanford: Stanford University Press.
• Nakou, P. (2025) Dealing with enduring uncertainty: Brexit during Covid-19. In T. Parnell, T. Van Hout and D. Del Fante eds. Critical Approaches to Polycrisis. London: Palgrave Macmillan, 69–98.
• Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (2017) OSCE/ODIHR Final Report on Turkey's Constitutional Referendum. Available at: https://www.osce.org/odihr/elections/turkey/324806 (Accessed: 27 May 2022).
• Öztan, G. G. (2015) The Struggle for Hegemony Between Turkish Nationalisms in the Neoliberal Era. In İ. Akça, A. Bekmen and B. A. Özden eds. Turkey Reframed: Constituting Neoliberal Hegemony. London: Pluto Press.
• Parker, G. and John Thornhill (2007) ‘France blocks Turkey eurozone talks.’ Financial Times. Available at: https://www.ft.com/content/734c22e4-2342-11dc-9e7e-000b5df10621 (Accessed: 10 January 2024).
• Patton, M. J. (2007) ‘AKP reform fatigue in Turkey: What has happened to the EU process?’, Mediterranean Politics, 12(3), 339–358.
• Pierini, M. (2017) ‘Dealing with Turkey’s Absolute Ruler.’ Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Available at: https://carnegieendowment.org/europe/strategic-europe/2017/05/dealing-with-turkeys-absolute-ruler (Accessed: 27 May 2022).
• Putnam, R. D. (1988) “Diplomacy and domestic politics: the logic of two-level games,” International Organization, 42(3), 427–460.
• Snow, D. (2004) Framing Processes, Ideology, and Discursive Fields. In: The Blackwell Companion to Social Movements. Oxford: Blackwell Publishing, 380–412
• Solmaz, M. (2017) ‘Any Party Welcome to Rally in Europe but the AK Party’, Daily Sabah. Available at: https://www.dailysabah.com/politics/2017/03/07/any-party-welcome-to-rally-in-europe-but-the-ak-party (Accessed: 25 December 2024).
• Stern, G. (1995) The Structure of International Society: An Introduction to the Study of International Relations. London: Pinter.
• Stimmer, A. and Lea Wisken (2019) “The dynamics of dissent: when actions are louder than words,” International Affairs, 95(3), 515–533.
• Sundaram, S. (2025) Rhetorical Powers: How Rising States Shape International Order. New York: Columbia University Press.
• The Guardian (2017) ‘Turkish PM Threatens Sanctions against Dutch over Minister’s Expulsion’. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/mar/12/turkish-pm-threatens-sanctions-against-dutch-over-ministers-expulsion (Accessed: 27 December 2024).
• Tisdall, S. (2017) ‘How Erdoğan’s Ruthless Drive for More Power Is Shaking a Divided Europe’, The Guardian. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/mar/19/ruthless-erdogan-leaves-europe-on-shaky-ground-turkey-referendum (Accessed: 27 December 2024).
• TRT World (2017) ‘Turkey lodges diplomatic protest over Netherlands incidents’, Available at: https://www.trtworld.com/article/13088816 (Accessed: 27 December 2024).
• Tuğal, C. (2009) Passive Revolution: Absorbing the Islamic Challenge to Capitalism. Redwood City: Stanford University Press.
• Tuğal, C. (2016) The Fall of the Turkish Model: How the Arab Uprisings Brought Down Islamic Liberalism. London: Verso.
• Wajner, D.F. (2022) “The Populist Way out: Why Contemporary Populist Leaders Seek Transnational Legitimation,” British Journal of Politics and International Relations, 24(3), 416–436.
• Wendt, A. (1999) Social Theory of International Politics. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
• Weiss, J.C. and Jeremy Wallace (2021) “Domestic Politics, China’s Rise, and the Future of the Liberal International Order,” International Organization, 75(2), 635–664.
• Wiener, A. (2014) A Theory of Contestation. Berlin/Heidelberg: Springer.
• Yeni Şafak (2017a) ‘Artık bizi tehdit edemeyecekler, o işler bitti.’ Available at: https://www.yenisafak.com/video-galeri/gundem/artik-bizi-tehdit-edemeyecekler-o-isler-bitti-2131931 (Accessed: 27 December 2024).
• Yeni Şafak (2017b) ‘Gurbetçiler oyuna gelmesin.’ Available at: https://www.yenisafak.com/gundem/gurbetciler-oyuna-gelmesin-2600937 (Accessed: 27 December 2024).
• Yeni Şafak (2017c) ‘Avrupa'da 16 Nisan korkusu.’ Available at: https://www.yenisafak.com/gundem/avrupada-16-nisan-korkusu-2626991 (Accessed: 27 December 2024).
• Zorlu, B. (2022) Sustaining Contention: Democratic Backsliding and the Political Opposition in Venezuela under Chavismo and Turkey under the AKP. Unpublished doctoral thesis, City, University of London. Available at: https://openaccess.city.ac.uk/id/eprint/30069/