Turkish Stars perform during TEKNOFEST 2021 the Aviation, Space and Technology Festival at Ataturk Airport in Istanbul, Turkey on September 26, 2021. Photo by Anadolu Images

Türkiye’s Linchpin of the Future: The National Technology Move

Turkey must depend on its own technological capabilities while China and the United States continuously compete in the new multipolar world order.

Technology has always been a determining factor of state power and their position in the international arena. While it has an immense impact on a state’s economy, technological development is directly translated into military power as well. Within this framework, one can argue that the United States becoming the sole superpower after the Cold War is primarily the result of the technological monopoly it created. This gave the U.S. the opportunity to create an international system based on so-called liberal values, which indeed were used and best served American and Western interests.

Most of the states were obliged to act in accordance with the U.S. system due to their technological dependence on the United States. Considering the unfair and unstable international conjecture of our times, technological development has become an imperative for states that aim to make their voice heard. Turkey has emerged as a leading state within this group: not only does it intend to increase its role in the international arena by taking advantage of this technological revolution, but most importantly, it aims to bring an end to the technological monopoly that has given rise to an unjust world.

Within this perspective, Turkey has conceptualized its efforts into the “National Technological Move” vision, which was officially announced in 2019. For many years, internal and external restraining factors affecting its position in the international arena hampered Turkey’s development and adversely affected the confidence of its people in the state’s capacity. In addition to the breakthroughs of Vecihi Hürkuş and Nuri Demirağ, examples such as Devrim Otomobili showed how national and domestic initiatives were stopped or blocked. However, in the last decade, overcoming the holding factors and paving the way for national technological initiatives have been the driving forces of Turkey’s national policies….

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[Politics Today, February 17, 2023]

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