The metamorphosis of metaphors of vision: "Bridging" Turkey's location, role and identity after the end of the cold war

Geopolitics

Volumn 14, Issue 3, 2009, Pages 531-549

  Yanik, Lerna K ^a  

^a BILKENT UNIVERSITY   (Turkey)

Author keywords

[No Author keywords available]

Indexed keywords

ETHNOPOLITICS; FOREIGN POLICY; NATIONAL IDENTITY; POLITICAL DISCOURSE; POLITICAL GEOGRAPHY; WAR;

ASIA; EURASIA; MIDDLE EAST; TURKEY;

EID: 70449622973     PISSN: 14650045     EISSN: 15573028     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1080/14650040802693515     Document Type: Article

References (116)

1. M. Aydin and S. Tezel-Aydin, Turkish Foreign Policy Bibliography: Sources in English, French and German, 1919-2001 (Ankara: Center for Strategic Research 2002) for a list of titles in English that contain the words East and "West" regarding Turkey's foreign policy and that obviously, is not inclusive. A lot more can be added to this list with other sources in other languages including Turkish.
2. H. E. Adivar, Conflict of East and West in Turkey (Lahore, Pakistan: S. M. Ashraf 1935);
3. H. Inalcik, 'Turkey Between Europe and the Middle East', Perceptions 3/1 (March-May 1998) pp. 5-18;
4. F. Tachau, 'Turkish Foreign Policy: Between East and West', Middle East Review 17/3 (Spring 1985) pp. 21-26;
5. L. Ruhl, 'Turkey, Between Europe and the East', Europa-Archiv 47/11 (1992) pp. 295-302;
6. G. Güzeldere and S. Irzik (eds.), Relocating the Fault Lines: Turkey Beyond East/West Divide (Durham, NC: Duke University Press 2003);
7. I. Sosyal (ed.), Between East and West: Studies on Turkish Foreign Policy (Istanbul: Isis Press 2001);
8. L. Rittenberg (ed.), The Political Economy of Turkey in the Post-Soviet Era: Going West Looking East (Westport, CT: Praeger 1998);
9. V. Mastny (ed.), Turkey Between East and West: New Challenges for A Rising Regional Power (Boulder, CO: Westview 1996).
10. J. Noyon, 'Bridge Over Troubled Regions', Washington Quarterly 7/3 (1984) pp. 77-85;
11. E. Kalaycioglu, Turkish Dynamics: Bridge Across Troubled Lands (New York: Palgrave 2005);
12. N. Kandemir, 'Turkey: Secure Bridge Over Troubled Waters', Mediterranean Quarterly 8/4 (Fall 1997) pp. 1-12.
13. A. Saikal and C. Kersetz, Turkey: A Bridge Between East and West (Canberra: Centre for Middle Eastern and Central Asian Studies 1996);
14. P. Holmes, Turkey: A Timeless Bridge (Istanbul: Shell Company 1988);
15. F. A. Vali, Bridge Across the Bosphorus: A Foreign Policy of Turkey (London and Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins Press 1971);
16. I. O. Lesser, Bridge or Barrier? Turkey and the West After the Cold War (Santa Monica, CA: Rand Corporation 1992).
17. To cite a few examples, Slovenia is referred as a "bridge"; the metaphor that applies to the Caribbean and Afghanistan is "crossroads"; the European Union, on the other hand, was accused of becoming a "fortress".
18. See, 'Diplomats Discuss Slovenia's Role as a Bridge to SE Europe', available at ;
19. A. G. Ramos and A. I. Rivera (eds.), Islands at the Crossroads: Politics in the Non-Independent Caribbean (Boulder, CO: Lynne Reinner 2001);
20. K. Masatoshi, Afghanistan: Crossroads of the Ages (Tokyo and Palo Alto: Kodansha International 1969).
21. P. Tank, 'Dressing for the Occasion: Reconstructing Turkey's Identity', Southeast European and Black Sea Studies 6/4 (Dec. 2006) pp. 463-478.
22. G. Dijkink, National Identity and Geopolitical Visions: Maps of Pride and Pain (London and New York: Routledge 1996).
23. Dijkink (note 6) pp. 5-14.
24. B. Rumelili, 'Liminality and Perpetuation of Conflicts: Turkish-Greek Relations in the Context of Community Building by the EU', European Journal of International Relations 9/2 (2003) pp. 213-248;
25. R. A. Higgott and Kim R. Nossal, 'The International Politics of Liminality: Relocating Australia in the Asia-Pacific', Australian Journal of Political Science 32/2 (1997) pp. 169-186; and most importantly, Samuel Huntington referred to Turkey as a 'torn' country.
26. S. P. Huntington, 'The Clash of Civilizations', Foreign Affairs 72/3 (1993) p. 43.
27. From medieval times defining what and whereabouts of first the Ottomans and then the Turks, as the "other," "marginal," "liminal," or as the "ambiguous" partner, European powers, individually and collectively have defined themselves and also Turkey. Theoretical and empirical literature about Europe's and the EU's individual and collective "othering" practices is vast. To cite a few: Rumelili (note)
28. Iver B. Neumann, Uses of the Other: The East in European Identity Formation (Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 1999) esp. ch. 2;
29. M. E. Yapp, 'Europe in the Turkish Mirror', Past and Present 137/1 (Nov. 1992) pp. 134-155;
30. I. B. Neumann, 'European Identity, EU Expansion and Integration/Exclusion Nexus', Alternatives 23/3 (July-Sep. 1998) pp. 397-417;
31. I. B. Neumann, 'Self and Other in International Relations', European Journal of International Relations 2/2 (1996) pp. 139-174;
32. T. Diez, 'Europe's Others and the Return of Geopolitics', Cambridge Review of International Affairs 17/2 (2004) pp. 319-335;
33. A. Çirakman, From the Terror of the World to the Sick Man of Europe: European Images of Ottoman Empire and Society from the Sixteenth Century to the Nineteenth (New York: Peter Lang 2002);
34. Ç. Keyder, 'The Dilemma of Cultural Identity on the Margin of Europe', Review 16/1 (Winter 1993) pp. 19-33;
35. M. Müftüler-Baç, 'Through the Looking Glass: Turkey in Europe', Turkish Studies 1/1 (Spring 2000) p. 22.
36. See note 1 and note 3.
37. F. A. Beer and C. De Landsheer, 'Metaphors, Politics and World Politics', in F. A. Beer and C. De Landsheer (eds.), Metaphorical World Politics (East Lansing: Michigan State University Press 2004) p. 6.
38. Beer and De Landsheer (note 11) Foreword.
39. P. McGreevy, 'Reading Texts of Niagara Falls: The Metaphor of Death', in T. J. Barnes and J. S. Duncan (eds.), Writing Worlds: Discourse, Text and Metaphor in the Representation of Landscape (London and New York: Routledge 1992) p. 50.
40. Barnes and Duncan (note 13) p. 9.
41. P. Chilton and M. Ilyin, 'Metaphor in Political Discourse: The Case of the 'Common European House', Discourse and Society 4/1 (1993) p. 10.
42. G. Lakoff and M. Johnson, Metaphors We Live By (Chicago: The University of Chicago Press 1980) pp. 3-6;
43. G. Lakoff, 'Metaphor and War: The Metaphor System Used to Justify War in the Gulf', Journal of Urban and Cultural Studies 2/1 (1991) pp. 59-72.
44. K. L. Shimko, 'Metaphors and Foreign Policy Decision Making', Political Psychology 15/4 (1994) p. 655.
45. Lakoff (note 16) p. 59.
46. Chilton and Ilyin (note 15) pp. 7-31.
47. L. W. Hepple, 'Metaphor, Geopolitical Discourse and the Military in South America', in T.J. Barnes and J.S. Duncan (eds.), Writing Worlds: Discourse, Text, and Metaphor in the Representation of Landscape (London and New York: Routledge 1992) p. 136; Lakoff (note 16).
48. G. O'Tuathail and S. Dalby, 'Introduction: Rethinking Geopolitics: Towards a Critical Geopolitics', in G. O'Tuathail and S. Dalby (eds.,) Rethinking Geopolitics (London: Routledge 1998) p. 3.
49. Rumelili (note 8) p. 221.
50. P. Bilgin, 'Only Strong States Can Survive in Turkey's Geography: The Uses of 'Geopolitical Truths' in Turkey', Political Geography 26/7 (Sep. 2007) pp. 740-756.
51. B. Belge, 'Modern Turkey', International Affairs 18/6 (Nov.-Dec. 1939) p. 756.
52. N. Erim, the prime minister in the 1970s, describing Turkey being at the intersection of three continents at a UN meeting: 'Sayin Basbakanin Birlesmis Milletler Asya-Afrika Gurubundaki Konusmasi, New York, 20 Mart 1972', in Resmi Temaslar (n.p.: Dogus Matbaacilik Ltd. 1972) p. 28.
53. P. Bilgin, 'A Return to 'Civilizational Geopolitics', in the Mediterranean? Changing Geopolitical Images of the EU and Turkey in the Post-Cold War Era', Geopolitics 9/2 (Summer 2004) pp. 280-281.
54. T. Özal, Cumhurbaskani Turgut Özal'in III. Izmir Iktisat Kongresindeki Konusmalari (Ankara: Basbakanlik Basimevi 1992) p. 11;
55. S. Demirel, 'Cumhurbaskani Sayin Süleyman Demirel'in TBMM'nin 19'uncu Dönem 3'üncü Yasama Yilinin Açilisinda Yaptiklari Konusma' in C. Ergen (ed.), Cumhurbaskani Süleyman Demirel'in Söylev ve Demeçleri (n.p.: 2002) p. 2;
56. T. Çiller, 'Basbakan Sayin Tansu C ̧iller' in Georgetown Üniversitesi'nde Fahri Doktora Töreninde Yaptigi Konusma', in DYP Genel Baskani ve Basbakan Tansu C ̧iller'in Konusmalari (19 Haziran-5 Kasim 1993) (Ankara: Basbakanlik Basimevi 1993) p. 269.
57. K. Kirisçi, 'Turkey and the Muslim Middle East', in A. Makovsky and Sabri Sayari (eds.), Turkey's New World: Changing Dynamics in Turkish Foreign Policy (Washington, DC: The Washington Institute For Near East Policy 2000) pp. 53, 54.
58. S. Kut, 'Turkish Policy Toward the Balkans', in A. Makovsky and S. Sayari (eds.) Turkey's New World: Changing Dynamics in Turkish Foreign Policy (Washington, DC: The Washington Institute for Near East Policy 2000) pp. 82, 83, 84.
59. Çiller, 'Basbakan Sayin Tansu C ̧iller'in Georgetown' (note 26) p. 270;
60. S. Demirel, 'Basbakan Sayin Süleyman Demirel'in TBMM'de Hükümet Programini Sunusu', in Basbakan Süleyman Demirel'in Konusmalari, (20.11.1991-29.2.1992) (Ankara: Basbakanlik Basimevi 1992) p. 76.
61. S. Demirel, Basbakan Sayin Süleyman Demirel'in 24.2.1992 Tarihli Basin Toplantisi (Ankara: Basbakanlik Basimevi 1992) p. 33;
62. S. Demirel, 'Basbakan Sayin Süleyman Demirel'in Le Figaro Muhabiri Claude Lorieux'ye Türkiye'nin Dis Iliskileri ve Güneydogu Sorunu Hakkinda Verdikleri Mülakat', in Basbakan Süleyman Demirel'in Konusmalari (1.3.1992-31.5.1992) (Ankara: Basbakanlik Basin Merkezi, 1992) p. 189.
63. T. Çiller, 'Basbakan Sayin Tansu C ̧iller'in Saraybosna'ya Giderken Uçakta Basin Mensuplariyla Yaptigi Sohbet', in Basbakan Sayin Tansu C ̧iller'in Konusmalari (3 Temmuz31 Aralik 1995) (Ankara: Basbakanlik Basin Merkezi 1995) pp. 419, 420;
64. Cumhurbaskani Sayin Süleyman Demirel'in 18 Ekim 1994 Tarihinde II. Türk Cumhuriyetleri Zirvesi'inin Açilisinda Yaptiklari Konusma in C. Ergen, ed., Cumhurbaskani Süleyman Demirel'in Söylev ve Demeçleri (n.p: n.d, 2002) p. 670;
65. Cumhurbaskani Sayin Süleyman Demirel'in Dis Politika Enstitüsü Tarafindan Düzenlenen 21'inci Yüzyilin Esiginde Türk Dis Politikasi Konulu Konferansta Yaptiklari Konusma, in C. Ergen (ed.), Cumhurbaskani Süleyman Demirel'in Söylev ve Demeçleri (n.p: n.d., 2002) p. 690.
66. T. Özal, '19 subat 1986 Günü Kraliyet Uluslararasi Iliskiler Enstitüsünde (Chatham House) Basbakan Turgut Özal Tarafindan Yapilan Konusma', in Basbakan Turgut Özal'in Ingiltere Ziyareti (17-20 subat) (Ankara: Basbakanlik Basin Yayin ve Enformasyon Genel Müdürlügü, 1986) p. 39;
67. T. Özal, Cumhurbaskani Turgut Özal'in 3. Izmir Iktisat Kongresindeki Konusmalari, (4 Haziran 1992) (Ankara: Basbakanlik Yayinevi 1992) p. 25.
68. S. Demirel, Basbakan Sayin Süleyman Demirel'in 14.4.1993 Tarihli Basin Toplantisi (Ankara: Basbakanlik Basimevi 1993) p. 32;
69. H. Çetin, 'Türkiye'nin Dis Politika Öncelikleri', Yeni Türkiye No. 3 (1995) p. 56.
70. H. Çetin, Disisleri Bakani Hikmet Çetin Tarafindan Disisleri Bakanligi 1993 Mali Yili Bütçe Tasarisinin TBMM Genel Kurulunda Görüsülmesi Vesilesiyle Yapilacak Konusma, (21 Aralik 1992) (Ankara: TC Disisleri Bakanligi 1992) p. 5.
71. st Century: Speeches and Texts Presented at International Fora (1995-2000) (Lefkose: Rustem 2001) p. 13.
72. T. Çiller, 'Basbakan Sayin Tansu Çiller'in Istanbul'da Aspen Enstitüsü Toplantisinda Yaptigi Konusma' in Basbakan Sayin Tansu Çiller' in Konusmalari (3 Temmuz-31 Aralik 1995) (Ankara: Basbakanlik Basin Merkezi 1995) pp. 182, 183;
73. S. Demirel, '1995 Yilinin Gelismeleri ve 1996 Yili Hedefleri, Cumhurbaskani Süleyman Demirel (20 Ocak 1996Ankara)', in C. Ergen (ed.), Cumhurbaskani Süleyman Demirel' in Söylev ve Demeçleri (n.p: n.d., 2002) p. 297.
74. Çetin, 'Türkiye'nin' (note 33) p. 55.
75. Time, 20 Nov. 1995, quoted in Iver B. Neumann (note 9) pp. 61-62.
76. Çiller makes similar remarks elsewhere.
77. See T. Çiller, 'Basbakan Sayin Tansu Çiller'in Almanya Seyahati Öncesi Basbakanlik Konutu'nda Basina Yaptigi Açiklama (4 Aralik 1995)', in Basbakan Sayin Tansu C ̧iller' in Konusmalari (3 Temmuz-31 Aralik 1995) (Ankara: Basbakanlik Basin Merkezi 1995) p. 429;
78. T. Çiller, 'Basbakan Sayin Tansu Çiller'in Almanya Basbakani Kohl Ile Görüsmesinden Sonra Basina Yaptigi Açiklama' (5 Aralik 1995)', in Basbakan Sayin Tansu Çiller' in Konusmalari (3 Temmuz-31 Aralik 1995) (Ankara: Basbakanlik Basin Merkezi 1995) p. 435;
79. T. Çiller, 'Basbakan Sayin Tansu Çiller'in Bilkent Üniversitesi'nde Yaptigi Konusma' (15 Aralik 1995), in Basbakan Sayin Tansu Çiller' in Konusmalari (3 Temmuz-31 Aralik 1995) (Ankara: Basbakanlik Basin Merkezi 1995) p. 511.
80. S. Demirel, 'Basbakan Sayin Süleyman Demirel'in Alman ARD Radyosu Muhabiri Harald Weiss ve Efe Ajansi Muhabiri Juan Fernandes Elorriaga'ya Verdikleri Mülakat', in Basbakan Süleyman Demirel'in Konusmalari (1.3.1992-31.5.1992) (Ankara: Basbakanlik Basin Merkezi 1992) p. 140.
81. S. Demirel, 'Cumhurbaskani Sayin Süleyman Demirel'in NTV Televizyonunda Yayinlanan Mülakati, 21 April 1997,' in Cumhurbaskani Sayin Süleyman Demirel'in Çesitli Televizyon Kanallarinda Yayinlanan Mülakatlari (Ankara: Basbakanlik Basimevi 1997) pp. 275, 276. Similarly, Bülent Ecevit believes that the emergence of Eurasia has helped Turkey to pursue a multifacted policy.
82. B. Ecevit, 'Bölge-Merkezli Dis Politika', Yeni Türkiye 3 (1995) p. 69.
83. This is also noted by I. O. Lesser, 'Beyond 'Bridge Or Barrier': Turkey's Evolving Security Relations with the West', (note 27) p. 205.
84. T. Çiller, 'Basbakan Sayin Tansu Çiller'in Avrupa Medya Birligi'nin 5. Avrupa Televizyon ve Film Forum'unda Yaptigi Açis Konusmasi (4 Kasim 1993)', in DYP Genel Baskani ve Basbakan Tansu Ciller' in Konusmalon (19 Haziran-5 Kasim 1993) (Ankara: Basbakanlik Basimevi 1993) p. 362;
85. I. Cem, Türkiye, Avrupa, Asya, Vol. 1 (Istanbul: Bilgi Üniversitesi Yayinlari 2004) p. 33.
86. I. Cem, Turkey in the 21st Century (note 35) pp. 4, 5.
87. I. Cem, Turkey in the 21st Century (note 35), p. 1.
88. I. Cem, Turkey in the 21st Century (note 35), p. 21.
89. I. Cem, Turkey in the 21st Century (note 35), p. 22.
90. I. Cem, Turkey in the 21st Century (note 35), p. 22.
91. I. Cem, Turkey in the 21st Century (note 35), p. 24.
92. I. Cem, Turkey in the 21st Century (note 35), p. 138.
93. S. Demirel, 'Cumhurbaskani Sayin Süleyman Demirel'in Türkiye Büyük Millet Meclisi'nin 20'inci Dönem 4'cü Yasama Yilinin Açilisinda Yaptiklari Konusma' in C. Ergen, ed., Cumhurbaskani Süleyman Demitel' in Söylev ve Demeçleri (n.p: n.d, 2002) p. 83.
94. I. Cem, 'IKÖ-AB Ortak Forumu: Cem'in Konusmasi', available at .
95. B. Ecevit, 'IKÖ-AB Ortak Forumu: Ecevit'in Açiklamasi', available at .
96. 'Developments Related to The Civilizations Alliance Initiative', Newspot 53 (Nov.-Dec. 2005), available at .
97. 'PM Erdogan Speaks to Italian Il Mattion Newspaper-Erdogan: Turkey is a Bridge Between Islam and Europe', Anatolia News Agency quoted by BBC Monitoring International Reports, 1 Sep. 2005. Former Minister of Foreign Affairs Abdullah Gül has also been quoted using Islam and the West as the two sides of the bridge.
98. G. Özalp, 'Türkiye Köprü Olabilir', Voa.com, 11 March 2006.
99. A. Gül, 'Dis Politikada Yeni Ufuklar', in A. Gül, Yeni Yüzyilda Türk Dis Politikasinin Ufuklari (Ankara: T.C. Disisleri Bakanligi Yayinlari 2007) p. 84.
100. A. Gül, 'Walking the Tight Rope: Managing Turkey's Foreign Relations', in A. Gül, Yeni Yüzyilda Türk Dis Politikasinin Ufuklari (Ankara: T.C. Disisleri Bakanligi Yayinlari 2007) p. 44. Similarly, Ali Babacan, who replaced Gül, as the Minister of Foreign Affairs, to a large degree, highlights Turkey's location, role and identity, just like his predecessors in the 1990s.
101. H. Kösebalaban, 'The Permanent Other? Turkey and the Question of European Identity', Mediterranean Quarterly 18/4 (2007) p. 96.
102. 'European Union Tells Turkey to Deepen Reforms', VoaNews, 22 Nov. 2007.
103. R. T. Erdogan, 'Conservative Democracy and the Globalization of Freedom', Speech Delivered at American Enterprise Institute, 29 Jan. 2004, available at .
104. R. T. Erdogan, 'Conservative Democracy and the Globalization of Freedom', Speech Delivered at American Enterprise Institute, 29 Jan. 2004, available at
105. R. T. Erdogan, 'Conservative Democracy and the Globalization of Freedom', Speech Delivered at American Enterprise Institute, 29 Jan. 2004, available at http://www.aei.org/include/event_print.asp?eventID=735
106. N. Iflazoglu, 'Gül: BOP Içinde ABD Ile Birlikte Hareket Ediyoruz', Radikal 14 March 2006.
107. E. Ç. Gürkaynak, 'Turkey as a Third Party in Israeli-Palestinian Conflict: Assessment and Reflections', Perceptions 12/1 (Spring 2007) p. 101.
108. 'Israil'den Hamas Tepkisi', Milliyet, 10 Feb. 2006.
109. 'Türkiye Köprü Olabilir', VoaNews.com, 11 March 2006.
110. H. Keinon, 'Erdogan Gets Positive Domestic 'Bounce' From Mediating Israel-Syrian Talks', The Jerusalem Post, 31 July 2008.
111. R. Perle quoted in S. Bates and M. Walker, 'Turkey: Bridge Over Troubled Waters', The Guardian, 2 Dec. 1998; 'ABD Baskani Clinton'un Türkiye Ziyareti 15-19 Kasim 1999', available at ;
112. 'President Bush Meets with President Gul of Turkey', available at ;
113. 'Dr. Rice Addresses War on Terror', available at .
114. 'Steinmeier: Türkiye Köprü Olusturabilir', Mynet Haber, 14 Jan. 2007, available at .
115. 'Rehn: 'Türkiye, Koprü Olabilir'', Maksimum.Com, 5 Aug. 2006.
116. 'Schmidt: Koprü Türkiye Degil', Radikal, 19 Nov. 2006.