Right Wing Populist Discourse in the European Parliament on Turkish Foreign Policy

Abstract

Right-wing populism is on the rise all over the world and has led to profound effects and changes in the international system. The European continent, which is identified with democracy and human rights, also sees its share of this trend. Today, right-wing populist parties and actors are gaining strength in many EU countries and come to the fore as a serious political focus. The European Parliament (EP), as an example of direct democracy, has become one of the most visible institutions facing this shift. In this article, the discourses of right-wing populist parliamentarians in the EP toward Türkiye are focused on through a social constructivist perspective. The 2009-2014 and 2014-2019 parliamentary periods are analyzed comparatively to present which discursive strategies MEPs used in their statements about Türkiye and what kind of Türkiye representation they constructed in the EP. The article benefits from critical discourse analysis studies and aims to contribute to the literature on the attitudes of right-wing populist groups on Türkiye.