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used as a trump card to be temporarily utilized in case of
dispute with the West. They do not look at the issue from a
strategic viewpoint. These circles can be found in
mainstream parties, center-right, center-left, MHP and AKP.
They interpret it within the scope of the foreign policy
toward Turkistan geography, the Central Asia, Caucasia and
former Soviet geography.
Turkey needs to develop a region-centered foreign
policy that is coherent, comprehensive and holistic in order
for it to develop a policy toward SCO that is specific to
Eurasia, which unfortunately does not exist. Nor does it have
any comprehensive and holistic policy toward Eurasia in
addition to the Balkans, the Middle East, the Turkic world
and Caucasia. This indifferent position has manifested itself
in foreign trade. For instance, according to data from
Turkish
Statistical Institute, share of 6
SCO members in total
exports of Turkey in 2015 was 6% and it was 25.7% in total
imports. Turkey’s total foreign trade deficit is 70.5% from
SCO members and the remaining 23.2% from EU members.
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While Turkey’s exports to EU countries were
$61.6B, it imported a total $79B in 2015. It exported $7.5B
to SCO countries while it imported $47.5B from them.
Turkey has a huge deficit in his trade with its second and
third largest foreign trade partners China and Russia. In fact,
Turkey’s trade relations with Russia go a long way back.
Relations between Ankara and Moscow were prominent
during the War of Independence as well as its aftermath and
the years of planned development. Being the first NATO
country having purchased arms from Russians and was
criticized harshly by the West, Turkey built many public
economic enterprises such as Çayırova, Aliağa, Seydişehir
and İskenderun with loans and technology borrowed from
the USSR during the Cold War.
In recent years, Turkey stated a few times that it
wishes to become a SCO member. It applied for becoming a
dialogue partner in 2011. This application was accepted in
SCO summit of 2012 unanimously. Afghanistan was given
“observatory member” status in the same summit. As
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“Şanghay İşbirliği Örgütü ve Türkiye”, www.mahfiegilmez.com., 27.
11. 2016