Turkish foreign policy after the 'Arab Spring': from agenda-setter state to agenda-entrepreneur state

Abstract

This article explores Turkey's changing foreign policy approach towards the Middle East after the spread of the Arab upheavals to Syria. Instead of preserving the status quo, Ankara has turned to a revisionist state that has begun to threaten Middle Eastern governments. While Turkey was reluctant to join the foreign military interventions against Middle Eastern regimes, (e. g. Libya) it has been instrumental in immersing NATO in the Syrian civil war. Such transformation ultimately undermines analyses that define Turkey as the kingmaker of the Middle East.