Ten Critical Years of Turkish Civil-Military Relations (2007-2017)

Abstract

This paper analyses 10 critical years of civil-military relations in Turkey by investigating a possible civilianisation and the growing AK Party influence in the military. As has been discussed by Turkish experts via a plethora of works, there have been unprecedented developments in Turkish civil-military relations during the AK Party's administration. Yet, recent events-namely, the 15 July attempted coup, the institutional and legal changes instigated during the ensuing state of emergency and President Erdogan's questionable position as both the AK Party leader and commander-in-chief-require us to reconsider the current status of civil-military relations. This paper first analyses the relevant theoretical debates in the literature. Second, it briefly summarises key events from the AK Party era. Thereafter, the paper analyses the so-called Fethullah Gulen incident. Lastly, the paper analyses the institutional amendments regarding civil-military relations, examining whether there is an increasingly partisan influence over the military.