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Stratejik Derinlik, Tiirkiye'nin Uluslararasi Konumu, by Ahmet Davutoglu. Istanbul: KUre Yaylnlarl, 2001. xiii + 584 pages. Index. TL 11,000,000.
Reviewed by Hasan T. Kosebalaban
The end of the Cold War did not weaken Turkey's geopolitical significance, but did spark within Turkey a critical reassessment of the country's international position and role. In the aftermath of the Cold War, the Turkish nation woke up to the fact that the country is surrounded by the troubles in the Balkans and Caucasia. The assertive and multidimensional foreign policy adopted by Turgut Ozal aimed at turning these troubles into advantages by acknowledging, rather than repudiating, the nation's historical continuity and its alleged responsibilities. Ahmet Davutoglu, in his new book (his first in Turkish), Stratejik Derinlik, Tiirkiye'nin Uluslararasi Konumu (Strategic Depth, Turkey's International Position), provides a theoretical formulation of this new interpretation of Turkish foreign policy. However, rather than being a mere account of Turkish foreign policy, the book in its style and scope, as well as in its desire to guide policies, proposes a grand Turkish geo-strategy. In this sense, it follows the model of the classical geo-strategy masterpieces such as the works of Alfred Mahan and Harold Mackinder from which the author quotes extensively.
The principal argument of the book is that Turkish foreign policy today lacks a strategic vision, and...