TY - JOUR T1 - Turkey’s Syria Policy: Constant Objectives Shifting Priorities TT - Türkiye’nin Suriye Politikası: Değişmeyen Hedefler, Değişen Öncelikler AU - Ataman, Muhittin AU - Özdemir, Çağatay PY - 2018 DA - December Y2 - 2018 DO - 10.26513/tocd.466046 JF - Türkiye Ortadoğu Çalışmaları Dergisi JO - TJMES PB - Sakarya Üniversitesi WT - DergiPark SN - 2147-7523 SP - 13 EP - 36 VL - 5 IS - 2 LA - en AB - Turkey’s foreignpolicy approach started to transform from a more liberal and humanitarian foreignpolicy to a more realistic and pragmatic one in 2016, which was manifested inthe Syrian civil war. In this period Turkey started to prioritize the use ofhard power in order to prevent the threats resulting from the civil war. Thispaper asserts that while Turkey’s objectives in the Syrian crisis have remainedstable, its priorities have changed especially in recent years. So, while from2011-2016 humanitarian norms dominated Turkey’s Syria policy, after 2016, thesenorms became secondary priorities, and were replaced by hard power-basedmilitary assertiveness. To support this hypothesis, six main objectives ofTurkey’s foreign policy are taken into consideration: Managing the humanitariancrisis, materializing the fall of the Assad regime, aiding the oppositionforces, waging a proxy war with Iran, eliminating the threat of Daesh, andpreventing the PYD/YPG from creating an area of dominance. KW - Turkey KW - Syria KW - Foreign Policy KW - Humanitarian Norms KW - Military Assertiveness N2 - Türkiye’nin dış politika yaklaşımı, 2016yılında liberal bir çerçeveden ayrılarak realist bir anlayışa sahip olmuştur. Budeğişimin en net göstergesi ise Suriye iç savaşıdır. Zira Türkiye, Suriye içsavaşından kaynaklı tehditleri önlemek amacıyla askeri güç kullanımınıöncelemiştir. Bu makale, Suriye krizi karşısında Türkiye’nin hedeflerinin sabitkaldığını ancak son yıllarda önceliklerinin değiştiğini iddia etmektedir. Nitekim2011-2016 yılları arasında insani normlar Türkiye’nin Suriye politikasınıbelirlerken, 2016 yılı sonrasında bu normlar ikincil öncelikler olmuş ve sertgüç odaklı askeri operasyonlarla yer değiştirmiştir. Makale bu varsayımıdesteklemek amacıyla Suriye krizine karşı Türk Dış Politikası’nın altı temelamacını merkeze almıştır. Bu amaçlar sırasıyla; Suriye’de ortaya çıkan insanikrizi yönetmek, Esed Rejimi’nin yıkılması, muhalefet güçlerine destek, İran ileyapılan vekalet savaşı, DAEŞ tehdidini yok etmek ve PYD/YPG’nin hakimiyet alanıkurmasının engellenmesidir. CR - Abdo, G. (2011, August 25). How Iran Keeps Assad in Power in Syria: The Weapons, Technology, and Expertise Tehran. Retrieved from Foreign Affairs. CR - Al Jazeera. (2012, December 12). ‘Friends of Syria’ Recognize Opposition. CR - Al Jazeera. (2012, August 13). Syrian Opposition Calls for No-fly Zone. CR - Al Jazeera. (2013, May 10). Turkey PM ‘Will Support’ Syria No-fly Zone. CR - Ataman, M. (2016, December 22). The Impact of Iranian Over-expansionism on Regional Politics. Retrieved from Daily Sabah. CR - Barkey, H. J. (2016). Syria's Dark Shadow over US-Turkey Relations. Turkish Policy Quarterly, 14(4), 26-36. CR - Barrett, R. (2017). Beyond the Caliohate: Foreign Fighters and the Threat of Returnees. The Soufan Center. CR - BBC News. (2011). Q&A: Syrian Opposition Alliance. CR - Beck, J. (2015). Syria After Four Years: Timeline of a Conflict. Retrieved from Vice News: https://news.vice.com/article/syria-after-four-years-timeline-of-a-conflict CR - Benmelech, E., & Klor, E. F. (2016). What Explains the Flow of Foreign Fighters to ISIS? National Bureau of Economic Research. CR - Bishku, M. (2012). Turkish-Syrian Relations: A Checkered History. Middle East Policy, 19(3). CR - Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees. (1951, July 28). United Nations Treaty Series, 189, 2545, 154. Geneva. CR - D’Alema, F. (2017). The Evolution of Turkey’s Syria Policy. Istituto Affari Internazionali. CR - Daily Sabah. (2018, March 13). Turkey to rebuild areas liberated from terrorists in Syria. Retrieved from https://www.dailysabah.com/politics/2018/03/13/turkey-to-rebuild-areas-liberated-from-terrorists-in-syria CR - Daloğlu, T. (2013). Friends of Syria Deliver Nothing New. Retrieved from Al Monitor. CR - DGMM. (2014, April). Law on Foreigners and International Protection. Retrieved from Republic of Turkey Ministry of Interior. CR - Durukan, O. (2015). Country Report: Turkey. Asylum Information Database. CR - Girit, İ. (2016, October 14). Turkish Support Crucial in Fight against DAESH. Retrieved from Anadolu Agency. CR - Global Coalition. (2017). Daesh Areas of Influence. Retrieved from http://theglobalcoalition.org/en/daesh-areas-influence-september-2017-update/ CR - Goksedef, E. (2018). The Strategy behind Operation Olive Branch. Retrieved from TRT World: https://www.trtworld.com/turkey/the-strategy-behind-operation-olive-branch-14592 CR - Göç İdaresi Genel Müdürlüğü. (2013). Yabancilar ve Uluslararasi Koruma Kanunu. Retrieved from T.C. İçişleri Bakanlığı: http://www.goc.gov.tr/files/files/goc_kanun.pdf CR - HABERTÜRK. (2017, March 29). MGK Toplantısı Sona Erdi! İşte Yapılan Açıklama. CR - Holliday, J. (2013). The Assad Regime: From Counterinsurgency to Civil Was. Washington, DC: Institute for the Study of War. CR - Hudson, J. (2016, June 28). Top U.S. Official: Islamic State Has Lost 47 Percent of its Territory in Iraq. Retrieved from Foreign Policy. CR - Hürriyet. (2011, January 15). Güriş’ten Komşuya Gev Yatırım. CR - Irish, J. (2012, February 4). France, Partners Planning Syria Crisis Group: Sarkozy. Retrieved from Reuters. CR - Islam, T. (2016). Turkey’s AKP Foreign Policy toward Syria: Shifting Policy during the Arab Spring. International Journal on World Peace, 33(1). CR - Kahl, C. (2017). An Insider’s View on How We Got Here — and What Trump Can Do about It. Retrieved from Foreign Policy: https://foreignpolicy.com/2017/05/12/the-united-states-and-turkey-are-on-a-collision-course-in-syria-trump/ CR - Karouny, M., & Tattersall, N. (2013, April 20). Syrian Opposition Voices Frustration with International Backers. Retrieved from Reuters. CR - Kasapoglu, C., & Ulgen, S. (2017). Operation Euphrates Shield and the al-Bab Campaign: A Strategic Assessment. Ankara: EDAM. CR - Keyman, E. F. (2017). A New Turkish Foreign Policy: Towards Proactive “Moral Realism”. Insight Turkey, 19(1), 55-69. CR - Kozak, C. (2017). Iran's Assad Regime. Washington D.C.: Critical Threats Project and Institute for the Study of War. CR - Kranz, M. (2017). This Map Shows How ISIS Has Been Almost Completely Wiped Out. Retrieved from Business Insider: http://www.businessinsider.com/map-of-isis-territory-2017-12 CR - Mearsheimer, J. J. (2006). Conversations in International Relations: Interview with John J. Mearsheimer (Part II). International Relations, 20(2), 231–243.Mülteciler Derneği. (2018, January). Türkiyedeki Suriyeli Sayısı. Retrieved from http://multeciler.org.tr/turkiyedeki-suriyeli-sayisi/ CR - Öḡütçü, M. (1994). Islam and the West: Can Turkey bridge the gap? Futures, 26(8), 811-829. CR - Özdemir, Ç. (2017). Suriye 2016. Ortadoğu Yıllığı. CR - Özkan, B. (2016). Turkey, the U.S. and Europe Are All Partly to Blame for the Festering Syria War. Retrieved from Huffington Post: https://www.huffingtonpost.com/behlal-azkan/turkey-us-europe-syria_b_8964242.html CR - Pamuk, H., & Bektaş, Ü. (2016, August 26). Turkey Fires on U.S.–backed Kurdish Militia in Syria Offensive. Retrieved from Reuters. CR - Priya, L. (2017). Astana Talks: A Prelude to Peace in Syria. Institute for Defence Studies and Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees. (1967, OCtober 4). 606, 8791, 270. New York: United Nations Treaty Series. CR - Republic of Turkey MFA. (2009). Joint Political Declaration on the Establishment of the High Level Strategic Cooperation Council Between Governments of the Republic of Turkey and the Republic of Iraq. CR - Republic of Turkey MFA. (2012). Chairman’s Conclusions Second Conference of The Group of Friends of the Syrian People. CR - Republic of Turkey MFA. (n.d.). Turkey’s Political Relations with Syria. CR - Reuters. (2017, January 20). Turkey Can no Longer Insist on Syria Settlement without Assad - Turkish Deputy PM. CR - Rezaei, F. (2018). Iran’s Nuclear Agreement: The Three Specific Clusters of Concerns. Insight Turkey, 20(2), Forthcoming. CR - Siddiqa, A. (2017). Third Round of Astana Talks: A Gordian Knot in the Making? Institute of Strategic Studies. CR - Solaker, G. (2015, August 11). U.S. Denies Reaching Agreement with Turkey on Syria ‘Safe Zone’. Retrieved from Reuters. CR - Syrian Arab News Agency. (2013, January 6). President al-Assad: Out of Womb of Pain, Hope Should Be Begotten, from Suffering Important Solutions Rise. Retrieved from Syrian Arab News Agency. CR - Taylor, G. (2017, February 7). Trump to Approve Weapons Packages to Saudi Arabia, Bahrain Blocked by Obama. Retrieved from The Washington Times. CR - Time Turk. (2017). Kılıçdaroğlu'ndan Irak ve Suriye Açıklaması. Retrieved from Time Turk: https://www.timeturk.com/kilicdaroglu-ndan-irak-ve-suriye-aciklamasi/haber-731089 CR - Tisdall, S. (2015, July 27). Syrian Safe Zone: US Relents to Turkish Demands after Border Crisis Grows. Retrieved from The Guardian. CR - Türk Silahlı Kuvvetleri. (2018). Press Release. Retrieved from Türk Silahlı Kuvvetleri: http://www.tsk.tr/BasinFaaliyetleri/BA_74 CR - UN. (1951). Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees. United Nations Treaty Series. CR - UN. (1967). Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees. United Nations Treaty Series.UNHCR. (2012b, May). Pledges 2011: Ministerial Intergovernmental Event on Refugees and Stateless Persons. CR - UNHCR Turkey. (2011, November 23). Information Notice Regarding Syrian Nationals Seeking International Protection. CR - UNSC. (2012). Security Council Fails to Adopt Draft Resolution on Syria as Russian Federation, China Veto Text Supporting Arab League’s Proposed Peace Plan. CR - Yeşiltaş, M. (2018). Turkey’s Strategic Reasoning behind Operation Olive Branch. Retrieved from SETA: https://setav.org/en/assets/uploads/2018/01/34_Perspective.pdf CR - Yeşiltaş, M., Öncel, R., & Öztürk, B. (2016). Turkey’s Fight against Daesh. İstanbul: SETA. CR - Yeşiltaş, M., Seren, M., & Özçelik, N. (2017). Operation Euphrates Shield: Implementation and Lessons Learned. Ankara: SETA. UR - https://doi.org/10.26513/tocd.466046 L1 - https://dergipark.org.tr/tr/download/article-file/574246 ER -