Turkey’s International Humanitarian Assistance during the AKP Era: Key Actors, Concepts and Motivations

Abstract

This study explores the key actors implementing Turkey’s international humanitarian assistance, the Turkish understanding of humanitarian assistance, and the main motivations of humanitarian assistance in post-2002 Turkey. Despite that Turkey has recently significantly increased its contribution to international humanitarian assistance, these efforts have received limited research attention from academia. By examining Turkey’s governmental, quasi-governmental and non-governmental aid organisations, and a historical account of the early Turkish international humanitarian assistance, the study discusses the relevant domestic, national security, and commercial motivations with respect to the implications of Turkey’s humanitarian aid. This study provides an overarching framework of Turkey’s international humanitarian assistance, which hopes to make a useful addition to the literature.