German-Turkish Relations Revisited: The European Dimension, Domestic and Foreign Politics and Transnational Dynamics: Ebru TURHAN (ed.) Baden-Baden, Nomos Verlagsgesellschaft, 2019, 291 pages, ISBN: 9783848758883.

• Author: Ulucay, Eray
• Position: BOOK REVIEW

The relationship between Germany and Turkey has a long history of ups and downs. The membership application of Turkey to the European Union (EU) brought a new dimension to the bilateral relations. The multidimensional nature of the relationship today is more controversial in political, social, and academic spheres. The book edited by Ebru Turhan revisits the German-Turkish relationship through the eyes of leading German and Turkish scholars. The book is divided into three main sections consisting of ten chapters discussing the most prominent topics in multidimensional bilateral relations.

The introduction, written by Turhan, offers a broader picture of the bilateral relations touching upon the turning points of recent years. The relationship is conceptualized as 'conflictual cooperation'. Cooperation in some areas is accompanied by the simultaneous conflictual situations in other areas. On the other hand, the 'intermestic nature' of the relationship helps us to understand how the foreign policy formulations of one country affect the domestic policy of the other one and vice versa. These notions give the reader clues to a better reading of the book.

The first section focuses on the European dimension of the relationhip. Funda Tekin and Mirja Schroder elaborate on the process of Turkey's accession from a historical institutionalist perspective and the role of Germany during that process. In this vein, they put an emphasis on institutions such as the Association Council/Committee, the Customs Union Joint Committee and the Joint Parliamentary Commission in light of EU-Turkey relations on one hand, against the German-Turkish Strategic Dialogue vis-à-vis German-Turkish Relations on the other. Ebru Turhan examines the stance of Germany on the relationship between Turkey and the EU. The changes of Germany's attitude towards Turkey on its way to the EU membership is examined in the shadow of current global challenges like the Arab Spring, the refugee crisis and the economic crisis. In the history of the Turkish membership process, there are obvious parallels between German-Turkish and the EU-Turkey relations. When the 'Red-Green coalition' had a Turkey-friendly stance, Turkey enjoyed a candidate status with the support of the German government. However, the situation altered slightly with the 'grand coalition' under the chancellery of Merkel.

For the analysis of the future relationship between Germany and Turkey, Thomas Krumm takes into...