Abstract
Economics and politics are inextricably linked in all countries. This is particularly true for Turkey, which is at a crossroads where politics overwhelmingly dominates economics. An accurate understanding of the way in which the Turkish economy integrates into the global markets, therefore, will not be possible unless the broader political context is understood. This paper argues that Turkey is geared up for a regime change, which is likely to be more authoritarian and less secular. It first emphasizes the Islamist-oriented Justice and Development Party’s (AKP) radical policy discrepancies, which appear as inconsistencies at first glance but in effect complement each other in the face of dynamic political changes to achieve a regime change. It then focuses on the role of economic policies that were designed to create an artificial economic miracle and to stimulate short-term consumption to achieve successive election victories. However, since the “economic success” was built on weak fundamentals, only a more authoritarian regime could rescue the AKP. The paper concludes by discussing the presidential system, which is essential to seal what has been achieved and facilitate further and more radical transformations.
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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Recommended Citation
Subaşat, Turan
(2017)
"Turkey at a Crossroads: The Political Economy of Turkey’s Transformation,"
Markets, Globalization & Development Review:
Vol. 2:
No.
2, Article 6.
DOI: 10.23860/MGDR-2017-02-02-06
Available at:
https://digitalcommons.uri.edu/mgdr/vol2/iss2/6
Author Bio
Turan Subasat is a professor at the University of Mugla. He received his BSc from the University of Istanbul, his MSc (Birkbeck College) and PhD (SOAS) from the University of London, UK. He previously taught development studies at the University of London (SOAS), economics at the University of Bath, UK and economics at the Izmir University of Economics, Turkey. His research focuses on development, international and political economics. He has published in political economy journals including the Review of Radical Political Economics and Journal of Balkan and Eastern Studies. He edited a book titled “The Great Financial Meltdown: Systemic, Conjunctural or Policy-Created?” published by the Edward Elgar in 2016.