Abstract:

The humanitarian diplomacy that emerged due to the diversification of diplomatic activities has started to play an important role as a complementary tool in the foreign policies of the states. However, using of the activities carried out  in this field as a complementary foreign policy tool by Turkey has been realized since the early of 2000s. Especially, after the events that started in Syria in 2011, Turkey has experienced a significant increase in humanitarian diplomacy activities. In this study, the impact of humanitarian activities carried out between the years 2011-2018 and intensified after the civil war in Syria on Turkey’s soft power has been made the subject of the research. The study puts specifically emphasise on the effect of Turkey's foreign aids and asylum seekers on Turkey's soft power. Elcano Global Presence Index has been used for evaluation. As it is related to foreign aid and asylum seeker elements, data on migration and development cooperation headings of the index have been taken into consideration. When the index data have been analyzed, it is reached the conclusion that  humanitarian diplomacy activities carried out between 2011-2018 have a positive effect on Turkey’s soft power and  these activities are an important complementary foreign policy instrument for Turkey.

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