Security Conceptualisation in Turkey

Although not one of the great powers of the twentieth century, Turkeys geopolitical location has enabled it to play a large role in world politics (Aydin 1999: 152). It holds the key not only to the Turkish Straits, but lies along the roads from the Balkans to the Middle East, and from the Caucasus to the Persian Gulf. It is a member of NATO, most European organisations, and an associate member of the European Union (EU). Turkey’s political involvement and exposed position assign an importance hardly matched by any other medium power. This strategic importance, for the West, has soundly reverberated amidst the dust created by the systemic changes experienced since 1989. Thus, Turkey has emerged as an important actor, poised to play a leading role across a vast region extending “from eastern Europe to western China” (Aydin 1996; Gurel/Kimura 1993).