26/11/2015
Turkey’s recent involvement in the international coalition fighting Daesh in Syria and Iraq brings out more doubts than certainties about the real motivation of this country for this military intervention in its vicinity. This piece of work aims to clarify why and how has Turkey apparently adopted a pro-active stance in the fight against jihadism over the last three months. Two main ideas link the article throughout: on one hand, arguably the change in Ankara's foreign policy responds to its national security strategy, addressed at stopping the crystallization of a strong Turkish Kurdistan or state dismemberment in the Middle East what so ever; on the other, the result of the elections in June and the second leg, scheduled for November, are two domestic factors decisively determining Turkey’s outreach.
Author: Miguel Ángel Medina Abellán