Projecting Power Through Aid : Explaining the Strategic Expansion of Turkish Aid Policy Despite Domestic Economic Constraints = 원조를 통한 국력 투사: 경제적 제약에도 불구한 터키 원조정책의 전략적 확대

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

This thesis explores a central paradox in Turkish foreign aid policy: the sustained expansion of Official Development Assistance (ODA) from 2002 to 2023 despite persistent domestic economic fragility. Traditional explanations that link aid volume to donor wealth or geopolitical realism fail to capture this pattern. Through a qualitative single-case study and historical analysis, this research identifies how non-economic motivations—particularly status-seeking and national identity projection—have shaped Turkey’s aid trajectory.
The study demonstrates that foreign aid became a strategic tool for influence and legitimacy rather than a byproduct of economic capacity. It highlights how Turkey’s evolving self-image as the “Protector of the Weak” transformed ODA into a vehicle for soft power and global status assertion.
These findings contribute to broader debates on emerging donors by emphasizing that aid behavior must be understood through political identity and historical experience, not solely through economic determinants.

국문 초록 (Abstract)

본 논문은 터키 대외원조 정책의 핵심적 역설을 탐구한다. 2002년부터 2023년까지 지속적인 국내 경제 취약성에도 불구하고 공적개발원조(ODA)가 꾸준히 확대된 현상이다. 원조 규모를 기부국의 경제력이나 지정학적 현실주의와 직접적으로 연계하는 기존 설명들은 이러한 패턴을 충분히 설명하지 못한다. 이에 본 연구는 질적 단일사례연구와 역사적 분석을 통해, 비경제적 동기—특히 지위 추구와 국가 정체성 투사—가 터키의 원조 경로를 어떻게 형성했는지를 규명한다.

분석 결과, 대외원조는 단순한 경제적 역량의 부산물이 아니라 영향력 확보와 정당성 강화를 위한 전략적 도구로 기능했음이 드러났다. 특히 ‘약자의 수호자’라는 진화하는 국가 이미지는 ODA를 소프트 파워와 글로벌 지위 확장의 수단으로 전환시키는 핵심적 역할을 수행했다.

이러한 연구 결과는 원조 행위를 경제적 요인만으로 설명할 수 없으며, 정치적 정체성과 역사적 경험의 맥락에서 이해해야 함을 보여줌으로써 신흥 원조국에 관한 기존 논의에 중요한 시사점을 제공한다.

목차 (Table of Contents)

• I. Introduction 1
• 1. Study Background
• 2. Purpose of Research
• 3. Research Questions and Objectives
• 4. Structure of the Thesis
• II. Literature Review 4
• 1. Theories and Concepts on Foreign Aid
• 1.1. Arguments from Pro-aid Researchers
• 1.2. Arguments from Aid-pessimistic Researchers
• 1.3. Conditional Approach
• 2. Donor Motivations in Aid
• 2.1. Humanitarian Motivations
• 2.2. Political and Strategical Motives
• 2.3. Commercial and Economic Motives
• 3. Soft Power and Identity Dynamics in Aid Policies
• 3.1. Defining and Concepualizing Soft Power
• 3.2. The Relationship Between Foreign Aid and Soft Power
• 4. Definition of Foreign Aid from Emerging Donors
• 4.1. China’s Approach to Foreign Aid
• 4.2. India’s Approach to Foreign Aid
• 4.3. Russia’s Approach to Foreign Aid
• III. Research Methodology 20
• 1. Research Design
• 1.1. Single Case Study
• 1.2. Qualitative Analysis
• 1.3. Historical Analysis
• 2. Data Collection and Analysis
• 2.1. Primary Sources
• 2.2. Secondary Sources
• 2.3. Data Management
• 2.4. Qualitative Data Analysis
• 3. Limitations of the Study
• IV.The Historical Evolution of Turkish Foreign Aid 27
• 1. Determinant of Turkish Foreign Policy
• 1.1. Ottoman Legacy in Turkish Foreign Policy
• 1.2. Governance, Protection and Early Humanitarian Action
• 2. Early Republican Era and Foreign Aid (1923-1947)
• 3. Cold War Era and Western Alignment (1947-1990)
• 3.1.Truman Doctrine
• 3.2. Marshall Plan
• 3.3. Effect of American Aid to Turkey
• 4. Post-Cold War and the Rise of Turkish Aid (1990 - 2002)
• V. Analysis and Discussion 48
• 1. The Paradox of Crisis and Constancy (1998–2002)
• 2. The Era of Economic Growth and Strategic Expansion (2002-2009)
• 2.1. The AKP Victory and Fiscal Stabilization
• 2.2. The Dramatic Surge of Turkish Development Assistance (TDA)
• 2.3. The Strategic Shift: From Ethnic Affinity to Global Reach
• 2.3.1. Geographical Reorientation: From Central Asia to Sub-Saharan Africa and MENA
• 2.3.2. The Post-Cold War Autonomy: USSR Collapse and Axis Shift Arguments
• 2.3.3. The Ideological Congruence: Pan-Islamist Discourse and Ummah Solidarity
• 2.3.4. The Economic Driver: Rise of Anatolian Capital and New Market Search
• 2.3.5. The Theoretical Framework: Davutoğlu’s Strategic Depth
• 3. Strategic Redefinition : Aid Policy in the Face of Regional Economic Turbulence (2010–2023)
• 3.1. The Global Financial Crisis (2009) and Aid Resilience
• 3.2. The Arab Spring and the Collapse of the "Zero Problems" Doctrine
• 3.3. Aid Transformation: The Pivot from Soft Power to Security
• 3.3.1. The Syrian Crisis and the Surge of Humanitarian Aid
• 3.3.2. The Hardening Policy: Security-First Approach and End of Soft Power Engagement
• 3.4. The Strategic Rationale: Projecting Identity via Humanitarian Aid
• 3.4.1. From Recipient Trauma to Donor Narrative
• 3.4.2. ‘Protector of the Weak’ Identity
• VI. Conclusion 74
• Bibliography 77
• Abstract in Korean 84