Humanitarian diplomacy as Turkey’s national role conception and performance: evidence from Somalia and Afghanistan

Abstract

In recent years Turkey has made Humanitarian Diplomacy (HD) an essential element of its foreign policy. This article analyzes Turkey’s HD as a role conception and role performance by focusing on two cases, Somalia and Afghanistan, as the two most significant cases of Turkey’s HD. It is argued that HD as foreign policy has provided Turkey with enough flexibility and ambiguity to bring together humanitarianism with interest. At the same time, Turkey’s foreign policy interests started to become more legitimate and accepted by linking it to widely respected norms. Finally, HD also helped the AKP to consolidate its international state identity as well as its domestic identity.