An Illustration of Sino-Turkish Relations: The Cyprus Question.

• Author: Temiz, Kadir
• Position: ARTICLE

Introduction

This article analyzes China's foreign policy within the framework of debates on the rise of China in the international relations literature by focusing on Sino-Turkish relations and the Cyprus question. The main drawback of theoretical arguments on the rise of China is the lack of concrete evidence they provide when examining the implications of China's national power for its foreign policy behavior and diplomatic positions in international crises. Therefore this article proposes concrete evidence about Chinese foreign policy toward Turkey, analyzing the Cyprus question in the period 2001-2011.

There are a number of reasons for choosing a contemporary period to explore the topic of this article. First, the 9/11 terrorist attacks in 2001 on the United States changed the U.S. national security strategies. The US.-led international order, which started after the Cold War, turned chaotic through its unilateral military intervention in Iraq in 2003. It has also led other countries to readjust their regional and global relations a good example being Sino-Turkish relations.

The year 2011 was chosen because of regional political developments in the Middle East. The Arab Spring affected almost all political, economic, and military discussions in the region while NATO intervention in Libya caused a dramatic turn in the diplomatic positions of Russia and China during the Arab Spring. (1)

The article is divided into three parts. In the first part, China's relations with Turkey are analyzed to illustrate China's primary interests in the political, economic, and military fields. In the second part, China's political and diplomatic position is analyzed in relation to the Cyprus question with a specific focus on the period 2001-2011. The last part offers a strategic assessment of China's involvement in the Cyprus question and the Eastern Mediterranean.

Sino-Turkish relations date back to the first interactions between the Chinese and various ethnic groups along the borders of China proper. Controversially, according to Sinologist Togan basic historical materials relating to the Chinese and ancient Turks date to the seventh century. (2) However, putting aside the main historical controversies of Sino-Turkish relations may aid in understanding the current relations. (3) Historical approaches to Sino-Turkish relations tend to focus on common experiences and positive contributions, especially in recent decades. Before the establishment of diplomatic relations in 1971, historical approaches to Sino-Turkish relations used ideological and religious concepts. The atmosphere of the Cold War and ideological competition between the two superpowers were the primary reason for this. During the Cold War, it was difficult for Turkey and the Peoples Republic of China (PRC) to find a common ground for improving their diplomatic relations. (4) As soon as diplomatic relations were established in August 1971, Sino-Turkish relations gradually started to develop and continue to do so today.

Political and Diplomatic Relations

Although common historical experiences in the nineteenth century such as imperialism, modernization, and Westernization led both societies to political, economic, and social reforms, their responses to those reforms and the implications were not the same. The collapse of the Qing and Ottoman Empires affected both societies in a similar way, causing great political and economic turmoil in their successive states. After the collapse of these two ancient dynasties, the Republic of China (ROC) was established in 1912, and the Turkish Republic was founded in 1923. (5)

After Kuomintang politicians, including Chang Kai-shek, fled to Formosa Island (Taiwan), Mao Zedong, the supreme leader of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), promulgated the People's Republic of China (PRC) as a new state in 1949. As a result, the civil war and domestic political struggle between the two Chinese factions became an international issue. The Taiwan issue, which continues today, emerged as the first political problem between China and Turkey since Turkey continued to recognize the ROC as the one legitimate government representing all China. Meanwhile, Turkey's participation in the Korean War in 1950 increased the negative perception of Turkey in the eyes of the PRC. (6) With the exception of the Chinese Communist Party's ideological discourses, which resonated in Turkey in the 1960s, there were no direct political or diplomatic relations between the two countries. (7)

The Uyghur issue, another political problem between the PRC and Turkey, started to take shape in the beginning of the 1950s with the arrival of the first Uyghur immigrants to Turkey. (8) Uyghur politicians, intellectuals, and businessmen migrated to Turkey from East Turkistan and communicated directly with politicians and businessmen in Turkey. (9)

Turkey recognized the PRC after the United States and NATO countries began to send warm political messages to the PRC in 1971. The Sino-American rapprochement eventually provided a new basis for improving bilateral relations between Turkey and China, something that had already been under discussion in Turkey six years earlier. (10) Turkey declared officially that relations with the PRC would be in accordance with procedures similar to those used for other socialist countries. Beyond official statements, the recognition of the PRC was seriously discussed in the Turkish parliament and in the mainstream media. (11) After its recognition, several agreements were signed between Turkey and the PRC, including trade protocols, the establishment of consulates, and cooperation on standardization, medical issues, tourism, and air transportation in 1972. (12)

The ongoing Cold War, as well as political and economic conditions did not provide the opportunity to improve Sino-Turkish relations until the 1980s. The first high-level diplomatic visit was made by Turkish President Kenan Evren in December 1982. Three years later, Chinese President Li Xiannian visited Turkey. (13) Then Turkish Prime Minister Turgut Ozal and Chinese Prime Minister Zhao Ziyang improved bilateral relations through diplomatic visits in 1985 and 1986, respectively. (14) In fact, due to the end of the Cold War, the 1990s was the real beginning of bilateral relations between the two countries. In addition to diplomatic visits such as those of President Suleyman Demirel in 1995 and Minister of Foreign Affairs Ismail Cem in 1998, Turkey tried to create a new political atmosphere and increase its role in Central Asia, which was most likely a concern for the PRC. The assertive, post-Cold War foreign policy discourse in Turkey did not become a reality during the 1990s due to domestic and regional political crisis such as the Gulf War and unstable coalition governments in Turkey.

Bilateral Sino-Turkish relations reached their zenith at the turn of the century. Chinese President Jiang Zemin's diplomatic visit in April 2000 opened new channels for improving not only economic but also political and military relations. Jiang's visit had two main objectives for China at the time. The first was to acquire support from Turkey to become a member of the WTO (World Trade Organization). The second was to accelerate current relations between the two countries. In addition to economic relations, political and diplomatic relations also reached a new level with both sides supporting an action plan signed in 1995. Importantly, however, the PRC's demands and comments on the Uyghur issue and the Uyghur diaspora living in Turkey gradually increased before Jiangs visit. The PRC openly put the Uyghur issue on the agenda of bilateral relations by emphasizing cooperation against international terrorism and separatism in this visit. (15)

As developing economies, both countries tried to diversify their foreign policy priorities, energy resources, and market orientation during the period 2001-2011. In this sense, the Middle East became a crucial region for both cooperation and competition between Turkey and China. This was not a zero-sum competition over resources and market orientations but a win-win competition providing new kinds of relations between them. This common perspective in bilateral relations and diplomatic visits contributed to this competition between the two sides. From 2001 until 2011, the PRC has been visited by Recep Tayyip Erdogan (once as the leader of the AK Party and once as prime minister), Abdullah Gul (once as Minister of Foreign Affairs and once as President), and Ahmet Davutoglu (once as the Minister of Foreign Affairs). On the other hand, there has been no presidential-level diplomatic visit from China since Jiang Zemin's visit in 2000.

The Uyghur issue is the bottleneck for Sino-Turkish relations and has the potential to affect diplomatic and political relations between the two countries. For example, after the 2009 Urumqi riot, which was the largest clash between the Uyghur people and Chinese security forces to date, the Uyghur issue became a serious political topic between the two countries. Then Prime Minister Erdogan's remarks on the situation were the first to openly declare controversy between the two countries. However, Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao's official three-day visit to Turkey in 2010...