7. Analyzing “T” in MIKTA: Turkey’s Changing Middle Power Role in the United Nations

Although sharing some degree of middle power identification, big disparities exist among MIKTA (Mexico, Indonesia, Korea, Turkey, and Australia) countries with respect to their political and economic systems, domestic priorities and problems, and their regional context, which make it difficult to talk about a common MIKTA identity/role. This study draws on social constructivism to problematize and analyze Turkey’s changing middle power role among MIKTA countries through their debates at the United Nations (UN). To this aim, the chapter will conduct a detailed and comparative discourse analysis of Turkey’s and the other MIKTA countries’ statements at the opening sessions of the UN General Assembly from 2001 to 2017 with respect to their social claims about themselves, including the way they define their (1) roles in global governance, (2) attitude toward international order, and (3) the nexus between their global and regional roles. By doing so, the chapter will theoretically question and empirically analyze whether there exists any meaningful evidence demonstrating Turkey’s adoption of a middle power role that could create the opportunity for converging interests among these countries.