Through critical analysis of Turkey's transformation under the AKP, this book explores the relationship between domestic transformations and global/regional dynamics. It also discusses the relationship between the Turkish transformation and the Arab uprisings and the implications of the Turkish case for regime transitions in the Arab world.

'Turkish developments in the economic, political and cultural spheres in the last three decades with the rise to dominance of the Islamist Justice and Development Party (AKP) have been the focus of increasing attention in scholarship as well as policy. Has the AKP been able to consolidate Turkish democracy or has it led away from it? How have these transformations been affected by the local-global nexi in which Turkey is embedded such as world markets, the EU, the Middle East? This book is a deep and instructive contribution to all these questions and a must-read for those interested in contemporary Turkish politics.'

Seyla Benhabib, Professor of Political Science and Philosophy, Department of Political Science, Yale University, USA

'This book is an outstanding contribution to our understanding of recent transformations of Turkey against the background of regional and global transformations. Keyman and Gumuscu provide a compelling account with exemplary lucidity of the ways in which Turkey's Justice and Development Party (AKP) has both steered and followed a new social, economic and cultural path that has significant consequences not only for Turkish democracy but also for the Middle East, Europe and the world.'

Engin Isin, Professor of Politics, Department of Politics and International Studies, Open University, UK

"Keyman and Gumuscu provide an original and up-to-date assessment of Turkey along several important dimensions: its successin economic transformation, its partial, but still incomplete, democratization, and its engagement in an activist regional foreign policy. By regional standards, Turkey looks like a success story in most of these arenas, but this careful analysis shows vulnerable areas as well."

William B. Quandt, Professor Emeritus, Department of Politics, University of Virginia, USA

Autorentext

E. Fuat Keyman is Professor of International Relations and the director of Istanbul Policy Center (IPC) at Sabanc? University. He has produced many books and articles on democratization, globalization, international relations, civil society, and Turkey-EU relations. His most recent books include Symbiotic Antagonisms: Contending Discourses of Nationalism in Turkey (2011, with Ay?e Kad?o?lu); Remaking Turkey (2008); Turkish Politics in a Changing World: Global Dynamics, Domestic Transformations (2007, with Ziya Öni?). Sebnem Gumüsçu is a Visiting Assistant Professor at Sabanci University and research coordinator at Istanbul Policy Center. Her articles on Islamic movements, Turkish politics and dominant parties appeared in numerous journals such as Comparative Political Studies, Middle East Studies, and Government and Opposition.

Inhalt

1. Introduction 2. Turkey's Transformation 3. Constructing Hegemony: the AKP Rule 4. AKP's Hegemony and Democratic Consolidation 5. Turkey's Proactive Foreign Policy under the AKP 6. Turkish Foreign Policy in the aftermath of the Arab Uprisings 7. The AKP, Arab Uprisings and the Kurdish Question 8. Secularism, Democracy and Identity 9. Civil Society and Democratic Consolidation 10. Conclusion: Turkey at the Crossroads: Democratization through the Strong EU Anchor