{"id":11425,"date":"2023-01-11T13:04:59","date_gmt":"2023-01-11T13:04:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.globalpanorama.org\/2023\/01\/bbc\/"},"modified":"2024-11-20T21:52:29","modified_gmt":"2024-11-20T18:52:29","slug":"feminist-foreign-policy-a-roadmap-for-turkey-bezen-balamir-coskun","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.globalpanorama.org\/en\/2023\/01\/feminist-foreign-policy-a-roadmap-for-turkey-bezen-balamir-coskun\/","title":{"rendered":"Feminist Foreign Policy: A Roadmap for Turkey? – Bezen Balamir Co\u015fkun"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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In\n2014, Sweden’s Social Democratic Party and Green Party coalition government\nidentified itself as a “feminist government”, and Foreign Minister\nMargot Wallstr\u00f6m declared that they would implement a feminist foreign policy (feministisk\nutrikespolitik<\/em>). Following Sweden, Canada -especially under Prime Minister\nJustin Trudeau, a self-described feminist- applied feminist approach to\ninternational humanitarian aid. France, too, has since adopted the feminist\nforeign policy approach under the name of “feminist diplomacy”. Finally,\nMexico was the first country to adopt a feminist foreign policy approach in the\nglobal south. Further, the necessity of feminist foreign policy has been\ndebated in the US, the UK, Germany, and the EU. Yet, on October 18, 2022,\nSweden again led the way in announcing that it would no longer use the concept because\nthe concept has led to diplomatic cooling with many countries, especially in\nthe Middle East. This decision has opened up questioning of the future of\nfeminist foreign policy practices in general. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Many\npeople actually heard the term \u201cfeminist foreign policy\u201d for the first time\nwhen Sweden’s conservative right-wing coalition government announced that the\ncountry would no longer pursue a feminist foreign policy. This is evident from\nthe comments posted under the social media accounts of media outlets reporting\non the announcement of Foreign Minister Tobias Billstr\u00f6m. Considering that even\nthe concept of “feminism”, which has a much\nlonger history than feminist foreign policy, is still at the center of\npolitical and academic debates, it is expected that feminist foreign policy,\nwhich was first articulated in 2014, has not been able to demonstrate a\nstraightforward approach in both conceptualization and implementation. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

To\nunderstand the scope of the term, it is necessary to define feminist foreign\npolicy. In its most complete form, feminist foreign policy is defined as<\/a> “a\nforeign policy pursued by a state in its interactions with other states and\nnon-state actors that aims to protect human rights and freedoms by prioritizing\npeace, gender equality, and environmental integrity.”\nDefined\nin this way, the feminist foreign policy includes all policies that aim to\nchange and transform colonial, racist, patriarchal, and male-dominated power\nstructures. It envisages the inclusion of the principles of freedom, rights,\nand justice in all areas of foreign policy, including defense, diplomacy,\ntrade, migration, and humanitarian aid. Considering regional and global crises\nsuch as the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war, the food, and energy crisis that is\nlikely to emerge in the short term, and the climate crisis that is expected to\naffect the whole world in the medium\/long term, the feminist foreign policy\nappears as an alternative model for solving regional and global problems. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Feminist\nforeign policy is not only about striving for the absence of conflict. It is\nabout reimagining the political and social structures of foreign policy. This\nwill lead to solutions to achieve sustainable security, inclusive peace, and economic\ndevelopment for all. In addition, policies to address gender inequalities at\nboth the societal and global levels, and to drive reforms in governance and\nstate institutions, are also fundamental to sustainable development. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Feminist\nforeign policy practices start from the assumption that the hierarchical\nstructure of existing international relations leads to exclusion and\nmarginalization. Therefore, powerful system actors are responsible for\naddressing ethical problems in the international system. If powerful actors\nmove their focus on the concerns and principles underlying feminist foreign\npolicy, the international system could be put on a normative footing. Feminist\nforeign policy, centered on the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325,\n“Women, Peace, and Security”, will also contribute to sustainable\npeace. Since feminist foreign policy aims to eliminate global inequalities,\nespecially gender inequality, which are at the root of most conflicts, it helps\nthe global community achieve inclusive peace. Moreover, given the positive\ncontribution of women to the success of peace processes and the building of\nsustainable peace, a sustainable global security approach will be possible\nthrough feminist foreign policy. In short, if any country is committed to\npreventing conflict, achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and\npromoting peace, it should pursue a feminist foreign policy that focuses on\neliminating inequalities. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

When\nwe look at the history of Turkish foreign policy, we see that foreign policymakers\nhave strived to protect the country’s sovereignty, territorial integrity, and\nnational security in a geography overwhelmed by conflict and war. Although the\nfocus and direction of Turkish foreign policy have changed periodically, the\nmain foreign policy goals, such as being respected and recognized by European\nstates and other Western powers, becoming a regional power, and a global actor\nin the field of humanitarian aid, have remained the same. From this\nperspective, feminist foreign policy can be an essential resource for Turkey to\nachieve its goal of becoming a regional and global power. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Contrary\nto popular belief, feminist foreign policy, which does not imply pacifism,\nargues that state actors should alternate between hard and soft power depending\non the severity of threats. Turkey is currently trying to combine hard power\nwith soft power in foreign policy and considers soft power areas such as\nhumanitarian foreign policy, humanitarian aid, and public diplomacy among the\npriority areas of its foreign policy. In this context, humanitarian aid\nprograms carried out by TIKA prioritize the economic empowerment of women and\ngirls. In its March 8 message published in 2020, TIKA announced that Turkey has\ncarried out nearly 280 projects for the social and economic empowerment of\nwomen and girls in various countries in the last decade. Through TIKA, Turkey\nhas been implementing development assistance projects to improve women’s access\nto health services and education and projects on maternal and infant health in\ncountries experiencing conflict and post-conflict processes. In these countries,\nTurkey has also implemented projects to support\nvictims of domestic violence against women<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From\nthis perspective, in the field of humanitarian aid, which is an essential tool\nof Turkey’s foreign policy, we see that Turkey supports efforts to empower\nwomen in social, economic, and political fields and invests in projects in this\ndirection, as in the case of Canada. Although it is not called feminist foreign\npolicy, it can be said there are reflections of feminist foreign policy in\nTurkey’s humanitarian aid and development practices. Institutionalizing a\nfeminist foreign policy approach in this field and supporting the participation\nand representation of women in humanitarian initiatives at various levels and\npositions will help Turkey to achieve its goal of becoming a global actor in the\nfield of humanitarian aid and international development. At the same time,\nTurkey’s support for gender equality in various parts of the world will\ncontribute to achieving multiple global SDGs, particularly SDG 5. Turkey’s\ncontributions to gender equality and SDGs through humanitarian aid will\nreinforce Turkey’s soft power in the medium to long term. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another\nfeminist foreign policy approach that will enable Turkey to achieve its goals\nis the feminist diplomacy approach practiced by France and Mexico. Ensuring\ngender equality in foreign policy-making processes and diplomacy at all levels,\nraising awareness of gender equality in diplomatic missions, adopting the\nWomen’s Peace and Security Agenda by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and\nintegrating a feminist foreign policy approach into the preparation of the\nNational Action Plan will be beneficial for Turkey to achieve its goals of\nbecoming a global player in its diplomatic efforts in general and in its\nmediation efforts in particular. As pointed out by Alemdar and Yinan\u00e7,<\/a>\nthis\nis an easy goal to achieve as Turkey has an experienced diplomatic corps with a\nsignificant number of female diplomats. In short, if Turkey adopts and\nimplements feminist foreign policy appropriately, women’s participation in\ndiplomatic processes at all levels will be guaranteed. Thus, Turkey will be\nrecognized by the international community as a respected normative actor that\ncan combine hard power with soft power. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Assoc. Prof. Dr. Bezen Balamir-Co\u015fkun<\/strong>\u202fis an international relations scholar who specializes in foreign policy and security. She received her Ph.D. degree from Loughborough University (UK). She has worked in several higher education institutions and research centers both in Turkey and abroad. Since 2016, she has coordinated the Izmir Policy Center, which is a consultancy agency. Most recently she is teaching at TED University as adjunct professor. She has published articles, book chapters, and policy briefs on her areas of expertise. She is also a member of Women in Foreign Policy Initiative.\u202f<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

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To cite this work: <\/strong> Bezen Balamir Co\u015fkun, ” Feminist Foreign Policy: A Roadmap for Turkey?\u201d, Panorama, Online, 11 January 2023, https:\/\/www.globalpanorama.org\/blog\/2023\/01\/11\/bbc\/<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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This article has been prepared with the support provided to the International Relations Council<\/a> and the Global Academy<\/a> by the Heinrich B\u00f6ll Stiftung Association Turkey Representative within the scope of the project titled ‘Foreign Policy for the 21st Century; Peaceful, Equitable, and Dynamic Turkey’.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Copyright@UIKPanorama. All on-line and print rights reserved. Opinions expressed in works published by the Panorama belongs to the authors alone unless otherwise stated, and do not imply endorsement by the IRCT, Global Academy, or the Editors\/Editorial Board of Panorama.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In 2014, Sweden’s Social Democratic Party and Green Party coalition government identified itself as a “feminist government”, and Foreign Minister Margot Wallstr\u00f6m declared that they would implement a feminist foreign policy (feministisk utrikespolitik). Following Sweden, Canada -especially under Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, a self-described feminist- applied feminist approach to international humanitarian aid. France, too, has […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":88,"featured_media":9859,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[510,486,508],"tags":[656,564,563,565,713,650],"class_list":["post-11425","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-100-years-of-the-republic","category-opinion","category-turkey","tag-english","tag-feminist-foreign-policy","tag-foreign-policy-and-diplomacy","tag-gender","tag-heinrich-boll-foundation","tag-turkiye"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.globalpanorama.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11425","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.globalpanorama.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.globalpanorama.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.globalpanorama.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/88"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.globalpanorama.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11425"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.globalpanorama.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11425\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.globalpanorama.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9859"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.globalpanorama.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11425"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.globalpanorama.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11425"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.globalpanorama.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11425"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}