Abstract:

The Middle East has been a venue of conflict and power struggle for decades and there are a number of contenders in this conflict. On the one hand, Egypt has traditionally been recognized as a leading country in the region. On the other hand, Turkey has emerged as a regional actor with clear interests in Middle Eastern politics thanks to its hard and soft power capabilities. Particularly, the Justice and Development Party (JDP) era has prioritized Turkish foreign policy towards the Middle East with strong reference to regional leadership. This paper will analyze the leadership competition between Turkey and Egypt on the basis of shared vs. competing economic and ideological interests. The economic interests would include relative size of these countries’ economy towards their neighbors and rivals, their economic interdependence with the region and their economic capabilities that would enable them to lead large scale projects within their territories and the whole region, and finally the military expenditure. The ideological interests, on the other hand, are an important parameter on the leadership competition in the Middle East. Combining the potential effects of these issues, this paper will attempt to shed light on the current situation and will give hints on policy implications regarding the leadership competition in the region.

Keywords: