Süreyya Yigit

Biography

Mandela: Secular Prophet

"All living beings will taste death" is the message that greets everyone as they enter Zincirlikuyu Cemetery in the heart of Istanbul. It is...

Franklin D. Roosevelt: Political Communicator Par Excellence

“Yesterday, Dec. 7, 1941 -- a date which will live in infamy -- the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by naval and air f...

WWW - Quis Custodiet Ipsos Custodes?

Winston Churchill once said that "democracy is the worst form of government except all the others that have been tried." Churchill did experience...

Can Political Scandals be Good?

In whichever society individuals reside in or visit, the laws of the land must be obeyed. Under authoritarian regimes, individuals have very little...

JFK + 50

Friday will be the 50th anniversary of the assassination of John F. Kennedy. Most who are in their 60s or older still recall where they were and what...

Eternal Torch: Atatürk

In times of crisis, some societies produce extraordinary men and women who are able to change history for the better.   The rarest individual of all ...

Billionaires' Elections: Czech Republic and Georgia

Jimmy Greaves, the famous English goal scorer and pundit, coined the phrase “football's a funny old game.” Politics can also be classified under t...

Foreign Control of Nuclear Energy

The issue of energy is at the very top of national as well as international agendas. After the 2008 financial crisis, most of the world is...

Chinese Energy Diplomacy in Central Asia

China is an unparalleled giant, both in terms of energy and population. It became the world's largest energy consumer in 2010. Similar to the...

Turkic Energy Supply and EU Demand

In international relations one tends to focus quite heavily on politics. Although it is a truism that in the complex web of global relations,...

MIKTA: A New Initiative

Conflict is an unwanted yet unavoidable part of life. Each of us faces innumerable choices every day and must decide one way or the other, in the...

Germany: Awaiting a Grand Coalition

The German general election held last Sunday was one of the most uninspiring elections that one can remember. Its result, however, is highly...

Bishkek Summit Opposes Intervention

The annual summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) was held in the Kyrgyz capital of Bishkek on Sept. 13. The Bishkek Declaration...

Olympics 5-0 İstanbul

İstanbul first tasted defeat in trying to host the Olympic Games on Sept. 23, 1993. Twenty years later, once more in September, it suffered its fifth ...

America's Long Shadow

The modern period in international relations has been one in which great powers have held major influence in different parts of the world.   The Cold ...

Sport as a Soft Power Tool

The decision of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to award the 2020 Olympic Games to Tokyo has made tens of millions of Japanese very happy...

Syria: Man's Inhumanity to Man

Many and sharp the num'rous ills Inwoven with our frame!   More pointed still we make ourselves,   Regret, remorse, and shame!   And man, whose he...

Remembering Martin Luther King

When these things happen to whomever, at whatever time, the impact is always one of deep hurt.   Parents strive to treat each and every child ...

Australia Prepares to Vote

The Australian electorate will go to the polls on Sept. 7 to choose a new federal government. The current minority Australian Labor Party (ALP)...

Public Diplomacy: The Power of Sport

Diplomacy is an essential part of foreign policy. The postwar period saw the rise of public diplomacy, which went beyond traditional diplomacy in...

Mongolia's Democratization Welcomed by All

The recent presidential election held in Mongolia was well received by the international community, which has emphasized the democratic nature of the...

Mongolian Presidential Election: Analysis (III)

With the result of the presidential election, Mongolian politics certainly resembles a strong domination by a single party. The Democratic Party (DP)...

Ending the Syrian Crisis: Five U.S. Military Scenarios

The Middle East continues to grab the attention of the region and the wider world. In Egypt, the deposed president is still held in an undisclosed...

Egypt Faces Critical Choices

Throughout the post-war period, Egypt was a good example, along with many other Arab and African states, of an authoritarian regime.   The kingdom ...

Mongolian Presidential Election: Analysis (I)

The past few weeks experienced important developments in the field of energy. Just as humans need energy to be active as without food we are unable...

Military Intervention in Egypt: A First Cut Analysis

The coup d’état which took place last week in Egypt has ended the speculation that had been mounting for several days at the end of June. Quite natu...

Syrian Conflict: Jaw-Jaw is better Than War-War

The recent G8 meeting held in Northern Ireland promised much in terms of finding a solution to the ongoing bloodshed in Syria.   Prime Minister David ...

Arab Spring: Running Around in Circles

The Arab Spring is undoubtedly a progressive development. Very few, if any, opposing interpretations to that have been made.   Yet, the level and ...

Erdoğan’s North Africa Tour: Expanding Turkey’s Foreign Policy Horizons

The Turkish prime minister’s visit to three North African states earlier this month did not receive much attention due to the mass nationwide p...

Nazım Hikmet Lives on Through Poetry

In the first act of Shakespeare’s “Hamlet,” Gertrude reminds Hamlet: “Thou know’st ‘tis common; all that lives must die, Passing through nature to ete...

African Integration and the Golden Jubilee Year

It was fifty years ago that a major movement for regional integration, consisting of thirty-two governments, came together in Addis Ababa to...

Bangladeshi Incident: A Dilemma of Development for Third World

During the 1970s there was a popular joke in Eastern Europe: “What is the difference between capitalism and communism? Capitalism is the exploitation ...

Turkish-Kyrgyz Kinship Should be Reflected in Close Bilateral Relations

Of all the regions in the world, Turks have a predilection for Central Asia. This stems from ancient historical roots.   Turks have a particularly ...

War and Integration: Importance of May 9

Anybody visiting Kyrgyzstan near its border with China on Thursday will witness a solemn moment. This can also be seen on the Kazakh side of the...

Eurasian Energy Pipelines

The global economy is expanding but is expected to grow only by 3.3 percent according to the latest International Monetary Fund (IMF) forecast. The...

Mongolia’s Importance for Turkey

When Turks think of Central Asia they focus on their historic roots. Thinking of trade, they recall the ancient Silk Road cities of Kashgar,...

Venezuela’s Future after Chavez

This month will witness two important presidential elections in Latin America. Paraguayans will go to the polls to decide their head of state, and in...

Unprecedented Rise of China May Mean Transition to Bipolar World

This month the new president of the People’s Republic of China, Xi Jinping, made his first visit abroad to the Russian Federation, having hosted US T...