Turkey’s Neighborhood Policy: A European Perspective

Across its neighborhood and in policy areas as diverse as security, trade, energy, and migration, Turkish foreign policy had fundamentally transformed. In some cases, such as Turkish policies in Eastern Europe or in the fields of trade and migration, the change since the end of the Cold War had been incremental. In other areas, such as in the Middle East and in the realm of security policy, the shift had been more abrupt and visible. But the transformation of Turkey’s neighborhood policies was undeniable. This article briefly recounts the major transformations in Turkey’s neighborhood policies over the last decade, to Turkey’s north and south. It highlights the principal achievements as well as the pending challenges and flashpoints. The purpose of this account is to assess European perceptions of and reactions to Turkey’s neighborhood policies, with an eye to drawing out the implications for Turkey’s tortured accession path to the European Union.

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