115 Kardaş: TurKey: redrawing The Middle easT Map or Building sandcasTles? © 2010, The Author Journal Compilation © 2010, Middle East Policy Council B asing its foreign policy on the principle of “zero-problems with neighbors,” Turkey’s rul- ing Justice and Development Party (JDP) has embarked on several projects to achieve “limitless coopera- tion” with near-by countries. As Turkey became increasingly able and willing to play an assertive role in the management of security and economic affairs on its periphery, observers focused on two re- lated aspects of its new orientation: Many of those good-neighbor policies, which developed momentum after the appoint- ment of Ahmet Davutoğlu, the architect of what some call a “brand new doctrine,” as foreign minister in May 2009, frequently concerned foreign-policy activism in the Middle East. Also, while formulating its regional policies, Turkey has emerged as more self-conident and autonomous, and, most important, has deviated occasionally from the transatlantic political agenda. Turkey’s rising proile and ambitious agenda in regional affairs have elicited discussion of the causes of its realignment toward the Middle East. The debate, which is often centered on the provocative ques- tion, “Is Turkey shifting its axis?” is linked to a broader question: How will all these changes affect Turkey’s traditional West- ern-oriented foreign policy? While some observers emphasize the role of external factors in provoking these transformations — especially the patronizing behavior of some Western countries — others point to domestic forces, primarily the ideological leanings of the JDP and the growing conser- vatism of the public. They maintain that the dificulties in Turkish-Western relations are exacerbating religiously conservative and nationalist tendencies among the Turkish people, who in turn force their leaders to seek realignments elsewhere. Concomi- tantly, it is argued that the JDP’s ideologi- cal platform motivates the party elite to “Middle Easternize” Turkish foreign policy. Another argument, in contrast, welcomes the transformation in Turkish foreign policy as a positive new geopolitical trend, attrib- uting it to a novel strategic doctrine devel- oped under the guidance of Davutoğlu, irst in his capacity as chief adviser to the prime minister and now as foreign minister. Turkey: redrawing The Middle easT Map Or Building sandcasTles? Şaban Kardaş Mr. Kardaş is in the Department of International Relations at Sakarya University in Turkey. He is currently an associate instructor at the University of Utah, where he is completing his Ph.D. dissertation on Turkish-American relations. 1