Description
This paper examines Türkiye’s contributions to the movement for an inclusive and pluralistic International Relations (IR) discipline, challenging the predominance of Western-centric frameworks. Türkiye’s unique position bridging the cultural, historical, and geopolitical divide between East and West has fostered a distinctive approach to IR, rooted in its Ottoman-Islamic heritage and regional engagements. Turkish scholars have increasingly sought "homegrown" theorization, developing concepts that reflect Türkiye’s experiences, such as Medeniyet (civilizational perspective) and relationality, which provide alternates to conventional IR understandings of sovereignty and security.
Türkiye’s "Asia Anew" initiative exemplifies this reimagined IR approach, advocating for multipolarity and greater collaboration with Asia and the Global South, challenging traditional alliances and Western-centric narratives. Theoretically, through an exploration of Türkiye’s evolving IR scholarship, this paper argues for a more inclusive and context-sensitive IR that accommodates diverse epistemologies and regional perspectives. Türkiye’s case exemplifies how pluralizing IR can enrich the field, inviting the broader IR community and scholarship to embrace pluralism and engage more deeply with non-Western knowledge systems. This approach is vital for an IR discipline that seeks to remain relevant and reflective of an increasingly multipolar world.
