RELATIONS BETWEEN TÜRKİYE AND CHINA IN THE CONTEXT OF BELT AND ROAD INITIATIVE: CHALLENGES AND PROSPECTS

RELATIONS BETWEEN TÜRKİYE AND CHINA IN THE CONTEXT OF BELT AND ROAD INITIATIVE: CHALLENGES AND PROSPECTS

Seyit Ali AVCU

ABSTRACT
The China Dream articulated by President Xi Jinping when he took office in 2012 guides China’s new Global Strategy, particularly the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) announced in 2013. Türkiye is also interested in this initiative and embraces it politically, with the idea that it will strengthen regional connectivity and thus increase commercial and economic gains. As a result, it completed many transportation projects on its route. However, Türkiye still faces a number of problems such as regional instability, security risks, lack of mutual trust and lack of robust guarantee mechanisms. On the other hand, Chinese businesses in Türkiye also face higher financing risk, strong competition and operational risks. In addition, there are other non-economic risks arising from politics, security and cultural differences. In this article, using SWOT analysis, the strengths and opportunities for Türkiye will be analyzed while the weaknesses and threats for BRI will be examined.

KEYWORDS: Belt and Road Initiative, China, Türkiye.

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