Turkey
Turkey was created in 1923 from the Turkish remnants of the Ottoman Empire. Soon thereafter the country instituted secular laws to replace traditional religious fiats. The modern secular republic was established in the 1920s by nationalist leader Kemal Ataturk.
In 1945 Turkey joined the UN and in 1949 it became a member of NATO.
After years of mounting difficulties which brought the country close to economic collapse, in 2002 a tough recovery program was agreed with the IMF, heralding impressive progress. Economic growth has averaged over 5% and inflation has fallen dramatically. Massive foreign debt remains a burden, however.
Turkey's powerful military - which has traditionally seen itself as the guardian of the secular system - has a long history of involvement in politics. In recent years, as Ankara has set its sights firmly on European Union membership, the profile of the military has been lower in public life.
Turkey became an official EU candidate country in 1999 and, in line with EU requirements, went on to introduce substantial human rights and economic reforms. The death penalty was abolished, tougher measures were brought in against torture and the penal code was overhauled. There were also significant reforms in the areas of women's rights and Kurdish culture, language education and broadcasting. Periodic military offensives against the forces of the secessionist Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), however, dislocated part of the population in southeast Turkey in the 1980s and 1990s, and drew international condemnation. In summer 2004 Kurdish secessionists called off a five-year cease-fire following what they called annihilation operations against their fighters by the Turkish authorities. There have since been clashes between Kurdish fighters and Turkish forces in the southeast.
EU membership talks were formally launched in October 2005, following intense negotiations. Accession negotiations are expected to take about 10 years.
Relations with Greece have long been strained over territorial disputes in the Aegean and the divided island of Cyprus. Turkey occupied the northern portion of Cyprus in 1974 to prevent a Greek takeover of the island. The beginning of EU membership talks – a major breakthrough -- came just weeks after Turkey agreed to recognize Cyprus as an EU member. Turkey was careful to note that this was not tantamout to full diplomatic recognition.
President Ahmet Necdet Sezer was sworn in May 2000, becoming the first president in modern Turkish history who is neither an active politician nor a military commander. Sezer, previously the chief justice of the constitutional court, is regarded as a secularist, a fact that made him acceptable to Turkey's powerful military. His term is due to end in 2007 when Parliament will choose a successor.
Prime Minister Erdogan, leader of the Islamist-based Justice and Development Party (AK), became prime minister several months after his party's landslide election victory in November 2002. Although his AK party has Islamist roots, he insists that it is committed to secularism. He identifies EU entry as a top priority and introduced reforms which paved the way for the opening of membership talks in October 2005.
Military action by U.S. and allied forces in Iraq have further raised the prospect that individuals or organizations could carry out attacks against Western interests or personnel. There have been attacks attributed both to transnational terrorist groups and indigenous ones. Further attacks, including in tourist areas, could well occur. In November 2003, terrorist attacks against the British Consulate-General and the headquarters of HSBC in Istanbul caused 33 deaths and injured several hundred. These attacks are believed to be associated with al-Qaeda. Several days earlier, bomb attacks on two synagogues in Istanbul killed 23 people and wounded more than 300. Since these attacks, other terrorist groups have been responsible for a number of devices exploding in locations across Turkey including in Istanbul, Izmir, Mersin, Antalya, and Ankara. Targets have included sites that are linked to Western interests as well as to the Turkish government.
In June 2004, the indigenous terrorist group, PKK/KADEK/Kongra-Gel, announced an end to their “unilateral ceasefire” and resumed violent activities. Two of the most significant incidents occurred in July 2005 in the town of Kusadasi, where bombs killed an Irish tourist and a British tourist. In the summer of 2005, incidents occurred in the popular coastal tourist destinations of Cesme, Bodrum, Antalya, and Mersin. Bombings have also taken place in Istanbul, injuring a Dutch citizen and several Turkish citizens. A Kurdish group ostensibly aligned with PKK terrorists claimed responsibility for a number of bombings in tourist areas in the Aegean and Mediterranean coastal resort areas and in Istanbul. This group has also warned tourists not to visit the country. Consistent with their threats, in June 2006 this group claimed responsibility for a restaurant explosion that killed three European tourists in Manavgat, a town in Antalya Province.
In late March and early April 2006, there was a wave of unrest in the southeast region of Turkey, where the PKK/KADEK/Kongra Gel has traditionally concentrated its activities. Violent clashes involving protesters and Turkish security forces occurred in the cities of Diyarbakir, Batman, Sirnak, and Sanliurfa, resulting in several deaths, many injuries, and extensive property damage.
Examples of terrorist incidents in 2006 include:
On August 4, 2006, twin explosions in Adana, on the Mediterranean coast, injured 17 people.
On June 25, 2006, an explosion in Manavgat, east of the southern coastal resort of Antalya, killed four people, including three foreign nationals, and injured several more.
On June 15, 2006, an explosion in the Eminonu district on the European side of Istanbul injured four people.
On June 3, 2006, an explosion in a shopping mall in the southern city of Mersin injured 15 people.
On April 16, 2006 an explosion in a suburb of Istanbul reportedly injured 30 people.
On April 7, 2006 an explosion in a mosque in the northeastern province of Ordu killed one person and injured up to three others. A device exploded at the Kolordu road junction in Diyarbakir, injuring two people.
On April 5, 2006, an explosion in Buyukcekmece, an outer suburb of European Istanbul, injured two people and caused damage to a building housing the governing political party.
On March 31, 2006, an explosion occurred in the Faith district of central Istanbul, near the Golden Horn. One person was killed and eleven were injured.
On March 15, 2006, a device exploded outside a branch of the HSBC bank in the southeastern city of Diyarbakir. One person is reported to have been injured.
On March 9, 2006, a device exploded in Van, eastern Turkey. Three people were killed and 19 were injured.
On March 4, 2006, an explosion near a police station in Izmir, on the Aegean coast, damaged vehicles and buildings. There were no injuries.
On February 13, 2006, there was an explosion in a supermarket in Istanbul’s Bahcelievler district. 17 people were injured.
On February 9, 2006, there was an explosion in a café in the Bayrampasa district of central Istanbul. 14 people were injured. One died later.
On January 30, 2006, a device exploded in the Turkish American Association in Adana, southern Turkey. Five people were injured.
Most of the above incidents in Istanbul have occurred in neighborhoods of the city not generally frequented by tourists.
PKK/KADEK/Kongra-Gel supporters on a number of occasions in 2005 and 2006 have set public buses on fire after ordering passengers to disembark. In April 2006, an attack of this type resulted in three deaths and at least one severe wounding. Thus far, all attacks on buses have taken place in areas of Istanbul distant from tourist destinations.
Turkish military operations against the PKK/KADEK/Kongra-Gel continue. Security forces continue to enforce restrictions on movement in areas bordering Iraq.
In addition to the actions of the Kurdish groups, the Revolutionary People’s Liberation Party/Front (DHKP/C) has assassinated US citizens in the past, and continues to be active in Turkey. Groups such as these and the IDBA-C, and others, continue to target Turkish officials and various civilian facilities.
In August 2005 Turkish police discovered what appears to have been a planned terrorist attack by a transnational group targeting maritime interests in Turkey.
Demonstrations occur regularly in major cities and should be avoided. In late March and early April 2006, the southeast saw demonstrations, some of which were violent with stones and Molotov cocktails being thrown and property being set alight or destroyed. There were 13 deaths and many more injuries in the neighboring provinces of Diyarbakir, Batman, Mardin and Sanliura.
