The Rise of the GCC States and Turkey: Convergent and Divergent Regional Agendas.

• Author: El Berni, Hazal Muslu

By Emad Y. Kaddorah

Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2021, 190 pages, [pounds sterling]58.99, ISBN: 1527574318

The Rise of the GCC States and Turkey: Convergent and Divergent Regional Agendas, by Emad Y. Kaddorah, investigates the periods of tensions and cooperation in relations between the Gulf Cooperation Council and Turkiye until the Gulf reconciliation at the Al-Ula Summit in 2021. Kaddorah argues that GCC-Turkiye relations have been in a state of constant flux due to both sides' competing efforts to gain influence in the regional balance of power. While analyzing the competing agendas behind these efforts, Kaddorah underlines that after all of the tensions throughout the post-Arab spring, both sides have come to understand that competition for regional influence occurs at the expense of common interests. Kaddorah presents a deeply informative book for those who want to know more about the role of balance-of-power politics and the impact of regional crises and wars on GCC-Turkiye relations.

The book is divided into five chapters. Kaddorah begins the first chapter by giving a detailed analysis of the establishment of the GCC in 1981 during the devastating years of the Iran-Iraq war. Referring to the balance of threat theory by Stephen M. Walt, the author underlines the rise and fall of political cooperation and balancing behavior between the GCC states and Turkiye since the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in 2003. Portraying Turkiye as a promising market to help economic diversification and a regional power to balance Iran constitute the book's primary theme. When emphasizing the decline of Turkiye's strategic partner potential given the competing agendas emanating from the Arab spring, Kaddorah mentions the mixed feelings and disagreement among the GCC states regarding their relations with Turkiye. This point constitutes one of the significant strengths of the book, since Kaddorah does not treat the Gulf states as a unified body; instead, he differentiates their regional policies toward Turkiye through the lens of their interests and security perceptions. To illustrate, Kaddorah emphasizes the role of the historical, psychological barrier between Saudi and Turkish decision-makers due to the Saudi-Ottoman clashes of the 19th century and the emergence of Qatar as a major Turkish ally, particularly after the establishment of a Turkish military base in Qatar in 2014.

In the second chapter, Kaddorah traces the beginnings of an understanding of...