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Türkiye Cumhuriyeti Republic of Turkey
Flag Coat of arms of Republic of Turkey Coat of arms
Motto: Peace in the Homeland, Peace in the World (Turkish: Yurtta Barış, Dünyada Barış)
Anthem: İstiklâl Marşı
Capital	Ankara
Largest city	Istanbul
Official languages	Turkish
Government	Republic
National Day
• Water (%)	1.3
Population
• 2005 estimate	69,660,559 (17th)
• 2000 census	N/A
GDP (PPP)	2004 estimate
• Total	$508,700 Billion (17th)
• Per capita	$7,400 (65th)
HDI (2003)	0.750 high (94th)
Currency	New Turkish Lira (YTL)
Time zone	UTC+3 (EET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+2 (CEST)
Calling code	90
Internet TLD	.tr
Since January 1 2005, the New Turkish Lira (Yeni Türk Lirası) replaced the old Turkish Lira.

The Republic of Turkey or Turkey (Turkish: Türkiye), is a bicontinental country located mainly in Asia Minor, with 3% of its land located in the Balkans. Its strategic location straddles the Bosphorus straits that separate Southwest Asia from Southeast Europe. The Anatolian peninsula comprises nearly all of its territory, and is situated between the Black Sea on the north and the Mediterranean Sea to south, with the Aegean Sea and Marmara Sea (both branches of the Mediterranean) to the west. Because of its position straddling the continents of Europe and Asia and surrounded by three seas, Turkey has been a historical crossroads, the homeland of and battleground between several great civilizations, and a centre of commerce. Turkey borders eight countries: Greece and Bulgaria to the northwest; Georgia, Armenia and the Azerbaijani exclave of Nakhichevan and to the northeast; Iran to the east; and Iraq and Syria to the south.

The Republic of Turkey is a democratic laic constitutional republic, whose political system was established in 1923. Turkey is a member state of the United Nations, NATO, OSCE, OECD, the Organisation of the Islamic Conference, the Council of Europe and in the process of accession to the European Union.

History

Part of a series on the
History of the Ottoman Empire
Timeline
Rise (1299–1453) Beylik of Osman Interregnum (1402–1413) Fall of Constantinople
Classical Age (1453–1566) Sultanate of Women (1533–1656)
Transformation (1566–1703) Köprülü Era (1656–1703)
Old Regime (1703–1789) Tulip Era (1718–1730)
Decline & Modernization (1789–1908) Nizam-i Djedid (late 18th and early 19th) Tanzimat Era (1839–1876) 1st Constitutional Era (1876–1878)
Dissolution (1908–1922) 2nd Constitutional Era (1908–1920) World War I (1914–1918) Partitioning (1918–1922) Abolition of the Sultanate (1922) Abolition of the Caliphate (1924)
Historiography (Ghaza, Decline)
v t e

Template:History of Republic of Turkey The Republic of Turkey was established on October 29, 1923 from the remnants of the Ottoman Empire. The origins of modern Turkey can be traced back to the arrival of Turks in Anatolia in the 11th century under the Seljuks. They would be superseded by the Ottoman dynasty in the late 13th and early 14th centuries -- this empire would last until 1923. The historical richness of people and the land laid the foundations of the current republic. Even though official history of the state began on May 19, 1919, with Mustafa Kemal Atatürk's onset of the Independence War, the issues and unique answers of the republic's history cannot be understood without the background on the Ottoman Empire, the spirit of people who fought to build the state, or the history of the land (Anatolia) that unites everything on it.

The war of liberation began in protest to the Mondros Armistice and the Treaty of Sevres, under the command of Mustafa Kemal Pasha. The war mobilised every available part of Turkish society -- this would become the foundation of the Turkish nation. This national movement against the victorious Allies of World War I revoked the terms of the treaty which sought to carve up the Ottoman Empire. By September 18th, 1922 the invading Entente armies were repelled and the country was liberated. This was followed by the abolition of the Sultans office by the Turkish Grand National Assembly on November 1, 1922, thus ending 631 years of Ottoman rule. In 1923 the Treaty of Lausanne recognised the sovereignty of a new Turkish Republic, Kemal was granted the name Atatürk (meaning father of Turks) by the National Assembly and would become the republic's first President. There are many different ways of classifying the history of Turkey. The least disputed classification is based on three global periods: the war of independence, the single-party period, and the multi-party period. Even if these periods have distinct characteristics, some issues do repeat in every period with subtle differences.

Politics

Main Articles: Politics of Turkey, Constitution of Turkey

Turkey's political system is based on separation of powers. Its constitution is called 'Anayasa' (Main Law).

Head of State - The function of Head of State is performed by the President "Cumhurbaşkanı". A president is elected every seven years by the Grand National Assembly. The President does not have to be a member of parliament.

Executive power - Executive power rests in the Prime Minister "Başbakan" and the Council of Ministers "Bakanlar Kurulu". The PM and Ministers have to be parliamentarians. The Prime Minister is elected by the parliament with a vote of trust to his government.

Parliament - Legislative power rests in the 550-seat Grand National Assembly "Türkiye Büyük Millet Meclisi", representing 81 provinces. The Grand National Assembly is elected every five years. To be represented in Parliament, a party must win at least 10% of the national vote in a national parliamentary election. Independent candidates may run. To be elected, they must win at least 10% of the vote in the province from which they are running.

Legal System

The freedom and independence of the Judicial System is protected within the constitution. There is no organisation, person, or institution which can interfere in the running of the courts, and the executive and legislative structures must obey the courts' decisions. The courts, which are independent in discharging their duties, must explain each ruling on the basis of the provisions of the Constitution, the laws, jurisprudence, and their personal convictions.

The Judicial system is highly structured. Turkish courts have no jury system; judges render decisions after establishing the facts in each case based on evidence presented by lawyers and prosecutors. For minor civil complaints and offenses, justices of the peace take the case. This court has a single judge. It has jurisdiction over misdemeanors and petty crimes, with penalties ranging from small fines to brief prison sentences. Three-judge courts of first instance have jurisdiction over major civil suits and serious crimes. Any conviction in a criminal case can be taken to a court of Appeals for judicial review.

All courts are open to public. When a case is closed to public, the court has to publish the reason. Judge and prosecution structures are secured by the constitution. Except with their own consent, no judge or prosecutor can be dismissed, have his/her powers restricted, or be forced to retire. However, the retirement age restrictions do apply. The child courts have their own structure.

If there is a need to inspect a judge, that can only be performed with the Ministry of Justice's permission, in which case a special task force of justice experts and senior judges is formed. The High Council of Judges and Public Prosecutors is the principal body charged with responsibility for ensuring judicial integrity, and determines professional judges acceptance and court assignments.

Turkey is adapting a new national "Judicial Networking System" (UYAP). The court decisions and documents (case info, expert reports, etc) will be accessible via the Internet.

Turkey accepts the European Court of Human Rights' decisions as a higher court decision. Turkey also accepts as legally binding any decisions on international agreements.

Foreign Relations

The modern Turkish Republic which emerged from the ruins of the Ottoman Empire, influenced by the legacy of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk has been pursuing a policy of "Peace at Home and Peace Abroad", in a region that has many conflicts. Some of these conflicts are a result of the complications that arose at the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire. In this geopolitical region, the determining factor of Turkey's policies is its democratic and secular political system, and its choice of a robust, free, market economy (Customs Union with the EU) and a social tradition of reconciling the modern society with cultural identity.

As detailed in the article "foreign relations of Turkey", Turkey pursues its stated objective by following a principled and proactive foreign policy that employs a broad spectrum of peaceful means. These entail, inter-alia, membership in the NATO Alliance and full integration with the European Union, taking the lead in regional cooperation processes, promoting good neighbourly relations and economic cooperation, extending humanitarian aid and assistance to the less fortunate, participating in peace-keeping operations and contributing to the resolution of disputes as well as post-conflict reconciliation and reconstruction efforts.

Please refer to the article "foreign relations of Turkey" for details.

Military

Turkish Armed Forces (Turkish: Türk Silahlı Kuvvetleri TSK) consists of the Army, Navy (includes Naval Air and Naval Infantry) and Air Force. The Gendarmerie and Coast Guard operate as the parts of Dept. of Internal Affairs in peacetime and are subordinate to the Army and Navy Commands respectively. In wartime, both have law enforcement and military functions.

The Commander-in-Chief is Chief General Staff General Hilmi Özkök.

After becoming a member of the NATO Alliance on February 18, 1952, the Turkish Republic initiated a comprehensive modernization program for its Armed Forces. Towards the end of the 1980s, a restructuring process was initiated in the Turkish Armed Forces.

The Turkish Armed forces, with a combined troop strength of 635,500 people, is the second largest standing force in NATO after the United States. Currently, 36,000 troops are stationed in Turkish-recognised Northern Cyprus.

Recently, the picture of Ataturk was removed from the logo of the Turkish Armed Forces. This action led to significant debate in the TBMM Türkiye Büyük Millet Meclisi.

Geography

Main article: Geography of Turkey, Provinces of Turkey

The territory of Turkey extends from 36° to 42° N and from 26° to 45° E. It is roughly rectangular in shape and is 1,660 kilometers wide. The area of Turkey inclusive of lakes is 814,578 square kilometres, of which 790,200 are in Asia and 24,378 are located in Europe. The land borders of Turkey total 2,573 kilometres, and the coastlines (including islands) total another 8,333 kilometres.

Turkey is generally divided into seven regions: the Marmara, the Aegean, the Mediterranean, Central Anatolia, East Anatolia, Southeast Anatolia and the Black Sea region. The uneven north Anatolian terrain running along the Black Sea resembles a long, narrow belt. This region comprises approximately 1/6 of Turkey's total land area.

Turkey forms a bridge between Europe and Asia, with the division between the two running from the Black Sea to the north down along the Bosporus strait through the Sea of Marmara and the Dardanelles strait to the Aegean Sea and the larger Mediterranean Sea to the south. The Anatolian peninsula (also known as Asia Minor) consists of a high central plateau with narrow coastal plains, in between the Köroğlu and East-Black Sea mountain range to the north and the Taurus Mountains to the south. To the east is found a more mountainous landscape, home to the sources of rivers such as the Euphrates, Tigris and the Araks, as well as Lake Van and Mount Ararat, Turkey's highest point at 5,166 m.

Turkey is also prone to very severe earthquakes. The Bosphorus and the Dardanelles owe their existence to the fault lines running through Turkey, leading to the creation of the Black Sea. There is an earthquake fault line across the north of the country from west to east. Within the last century there were many earthquakes along this fault line, the sizes and locations of these earthquakes can be seen on the Fault lines & Earthquakes image. This image also includes a small scaled map that shows other fault lines in Turkey.

Turkey is subdivided into 81 provinces (iller, singular - il). Each province is divided into subprovinces (ilçeler in Turkish; singular ilçe). The provincial capital, also called the central subprovince usually bears the same name as the province; the exceptions are Hatay (cap: Antakya), Kocaeli (cap: İzmit), and Sakarya (cap: Adapazarı). Major provinces include: Istanbul 11 million, Ankara 4 million, Izmir 3.5 million, Bursa 2.1 million, Konya 2.2 million, Adana 1.8 million.

The capital city of Turkey is Ankara, but the largest city is İstanbul. Other important cities include İzmir, Bursa, Adana, Trabzon, Malatya, Gaziantep, Erzurum, Kayseri, İzmit (Kocaeli), Konya, Mersin, Diyarbakır, Antalya and Samsun. See the list of cities in Turkey.

The climate is a Mediterranean temperate climate, with hot, dry summers and mild, wet and cold winters, though conditions can be much harsher in the more arid interior.

Economy

Turkey's economy is a complex mix of modern industry and commerce along with a traditional agriculture sector that in 2001 still accounted for 40% of employment. Turkey has a strong and rapidly growing private sector, yet the state still plays a major role in basic industry, banking, transport, and communication. It is estimated that 50% of the population lives under the international standards of poverty, especially in the war torn south-east areas.

Agriculture

Turkey has been self-sufficient in food production since the 1980s. The agricultural output has been growing at a respectable rate. However, since the 1980's agriculture has been in a state of decline compared to the total economy. Agricultural loans are issued with negative interest rates. Today, many of the institutions established between 1930 and 1980 continue to play important roles in the practices of farmers. Many old agricultural attitudes remain widespread. These traditions are expected to change with the EU accession process. Turkey is continuously improving the process of dismantling the incentive system; fertiliser and pesticide subsidies have been curtailed, and remaining price supports have been gradually converted to floor prices. The government has also initiated many planned projects, such as the G.A.P project. G.A.P shows a very promising future for the southeastern agriculture.

Given all the efforts of the government, agricultural extension and research services are poorly organised in Turkey. This has been attributed to shortages of qualified advisers, transportation, and equipment. Agricultural research is distributed among nearly 100 government institutions and universities. The inability to spread the use of new technologies has been attributed to a reluctance of trained personnel to work in the field. The pay disparity in this sector is traditionally very high and incentives to train people do not cover this gap. Research is organised by commodity, with independent units for such major crops as cotton, tobacco, and citrus fruit. Observers note that coordination of the efforts of different research units and links between extension services are inadequate.

The livestock industry, compared to initial years of the republic showed little improvement in productivity, and the later years of the decade saw stagnation. However livestock products, including meat, milk, wool, and eggs, contributed to more than 1/3 of the value of agricultural output.

Industrial sector

The largest industry - and largest exporter - is textiles and clothing, which is almost entirely in private hands, next to petrolium refineries (Izmir, Istanbul, Adana, and Kayseri), Iron and Stell Mill at Karabuk and Eregli Iron and Stell works. Also, brick, tile, glass, leather, chemicals and pharmecceuticals, metalworking, cordage, flour milling, vegetable oil, paper products, plastic products and rubber processing.

Sugar-beet industry is the number one, which produces more than domestic use.

The automotive industry, which is the seventh largest in Europe, is also an important part of the economy, since 1970s. Most of the production of machines, consumer goods, and tools take place in hundreds of small machine shops. Automation at this industry type is just begining.

Service sector

The road network was an estimated 382,397 km in 1999, including 95,599 km of paved roads and 1,749 km of motorways. The rail network was 8,682 km in 1999, including 2,133 km of electrified track. There are 1,200 km of navigable waterways. There were 118 airports in 1999, including five international airports at Istanbul, Ankara, Izmir, Trabzon and Dalaman.

Telecommunications were liberalised in 2004 after the creation of the Telecommunication Authority. Private sector companies operate in mobile telephony and Internet access. There were 19 million fixed phone lines, 36 million mobile phones, and 12 million Internet users by the August, 2005.

Financial sector

"The Central Bank of Republic of Turkey" was founded in 1930, as a privileged joint-stock company. It possesses the sole right of note issue. It also has the obligation to provide for the monetary requirements of the state agricultural and commercial enterprises. All foriegn exchange transfers are exclusively handled by the central bank. The bank has 25 domestic branches, as well as branches in New York, London, Frankfurt, and Zurich.

In 1998 there were 72 banks. In late 2000 and early 2001 a growing trade deficit and weaknesses in the banking sector plunged the economy into crisis. There was a recession followed by the floating of the lira. This financial breakdown brought the number of banks to 31. Currently more then 34% of the assets are concentrated in the Agricultural Bank (Ziraat Bankasi), Housing Bank (Yapi Kredi Bankasi), IsBank and Akbank. There are also Middle Eastern Trading Banks, which practice an Islamic type of trading. The five big state-owned banks restructured during 2001. Political involvement was minimized and loaning policies were changed. However, over-staffing remains a problem.

The Istanbul Stock Exchange opened in 1985 and Istanbul Gold Exchange in 1995.

Goverment regulations passed in 1929 required all insurance companies to reinsure 30% of each policy with policy with National Reinsurance Corp. In 1954, life insurance was exempted from this requirement. The insurance market is officially regulated through the Ministery of Commerce.

Foreign direct investment in Turkey remains low - less than USD 1 billion annually. Results in 2002 were much better, because of strong financial support from the IMF and tighter fiscal policy. Continued slow global growth and serious political tensions in the Middle East cast a shadow over growth prospects in the future.

In recent years the economic situation has been marked by erratic economic growth and serious imbalances. Real GNP growth has exceeded 6% in many years, but this strong expansion has been interrupted by sharp declines in output in 1994, 1999, and 2001. Meanwhile the public sector fiscal deficit has regularly exceeded 10% of GDP - due in large part to the huge burden of interest payments, which in 2001 accounted for more than 50% of central government spending - while inflation has remained in the high double digit range.

For a time, the lira was synonymous with an low-valued currency. Recently, the "New Turkish lira" was introduced, worth 1 million old lira. (In essence, they "slashed off some zeroes".) This was meant to be a symbol of a stronger currency, after a long period of high inflation that had devalued the currency so greatly.

Natural resources

Turkey is an oil producer, but the current levels are not enough to make it self-sufficient.

The pipeline network in Turkey included 1,738 km for crude oil, 2,321 km for petroleum products, and 708 km for natural gas in 1999. Several major new pipelines are planned, especially the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline for Caspian oilfields, the longest one in the world, which recently opened in 2005.

Employment

Turkey's labour force is flexible, with a wide spectrum of skills from the unskilled to highly educated. Turkey is obliged to apply EU employment and social laws to qualify for membership.

Society

Demographics

The legal use of term "Turkish" (a citizen of Turkey) is different than the ethnic definition (an ethnic Turk). However, the majority of the Turkish population (more than 70%) are of Turkish ethnicity. The ethnic minorities include, besides the legally defined minorities, Abkhaz, Albanians, Arabs, Bosniaks, Chaldeans, Chechens, Circassians, Laz, Syriacs, and Zazas.

The largest group of non-Turkic ethnicity are the Kurds, a distinct ethnic group concentrated in the east, consisting of 20-25% of the total population. The 1965 census determined that 7.1% of the population used Kurdish as their primary language and the knowledge of the language was stated by the 12.7% of the population in total, but there are many Turkish-speaking Kurds. According to the CIA fact book, 20% of the population are ethnic Kurds.

The term "minority" itself remains a sensitive issue in Turkey, since the Turkish State only considers the communities mentioned in the text of Treaty of Lausanne. Minorities include Armenians, Syriacs, Greeks, Georgians, Hamshenis, Jews, Levantines, Ossetians, Pomaks, and Roma (Roma is a name for Gypsies).

Due to a demand for an increased labour force in Western Europe between 1960 and 1980 many Turkish citizens emigrated to West Germany, the Netherlands, France and other Western European countries, forming a significant overseas population. Recently, many have also settled in Russia and other neighbouring countries.

Education

Education is compulsory and free from ages 6 to 14. There are around 820 higher education institutes including universities, with a total student enrollment of over 1 million. The 15 main universities are in Istanbul, Ankara. Tertiary education is the responsibility of the Higher Education Council, and funding is provided by the state. From 1998 the universities were given greater autonomy, and were encouraged to raise funds from partnerships with industry.

There are approximately 85 universities in Turkey. There are two types of universities, state and (private) foundational. State universities charge very low fees and foundationals are highly expensive with fees up to $15 000 or sometimes even more. The capacity in total of Turkish universities is approximately 300.000. Some universities can compete with the best world universities whereas some are unable to provide the necessary educational standards due to financial problems and underfunding. However, university students are a lucky minority in Turkey. Universities provide either two or four years of education for undergraduate studies. For graduate studies, two further years is necessary, as is typical throughout the world.

The Scientific and Technical Research Council of Turkey coordinates basic and applied research and development. There are 64 research institutes and organisations. R&D strengths include agriculture, forestry, health, biotechnology, nuclear technologies, minerals, materials, IT, and defence.

Culture

Turkey has a very diverse culture derived from various elements of the Ottoman Empire, European, and the Islamic traditions. As Turkey successfully transformed from a religion-driven former Ottoman Empire into a modern nation-state with a very strong separation of state and religion, the increase in the methods of artistic expression followed. During the first years of the republic, the government invested a large amount of resources into the fine arts, such as paintings, sculptures and architecture amongst other things. This was done as both a process of modernisation and creating a cultural identity. Today, the Turkish economy is diverse enough to subsidise individual artists with great freedom.

Religion

Nominally, 98% of the population is Muslim. Most belong to the Sunni branch of Islam. About 15-20% of the population are Alevi Muslims. There is also a Twelver Shia minority, mainly of Azeri descent. Christian minorities (Greek Orthodox, Armenian Apostolic (Gregorian), Syriac Orthodox, Roman Catholics and Protestants) are also present, as well as Jews, Bahá'ís, and the Yezidis.

Unlike other Muslim-majority countries, there is a strong tradition of separation of church and state in Turkey. Even though the state does not have any/or promote any religion, it actively monitors the area between the religions. The constitutional rule that prohibits discrimination on religious grounds, is taken very seriously. The Turkish constitution recognises freedom of religion for individuals, and the religious communities are placed under the protection of state, but the constitution explicitly states that they cannot become involved in the political process, by forming a religious party for example. No party can claim that it represents a form of religious belief. The religious sensibilities are represented through conservative parties, such as the currently rulling AKP party.

The mainstream Hanafi school of Sunni Islam is largely organised by the state, through Diyanet İşleri Başkanlığı (Department of Religious Affairs). The Diyanet is the main Islamic framework established after abolition of the Ulama and Seyh-ul-Islam of the old régime. As a consequence, they control all mosques and Muslim clerics. Imams are trained in Imam vocational schools and at theology departments at universities. The department supports Sunni Islam and has commissions authorised to give Fatwa judgements on Islamic issues. The department is criticised by the Alevi Muslims for not supporting their beliefs.

The ecumenical orthodox patriarch (patrik) governs the Greek-Orthodox Church in Turkey and acts as the spiritual leader of all Orthodox churches throughout the world, the Armenian patrik the Armenian Church, while the Jewish community is lead by the hahambasi, Turkey's Chief Rabbi, all in Istanbul.

Because of different historical factors playing an important role in defining a Turkish identity, the culture of Turkey is an interesting combination of clear efforts to be "modern" and Western, combined with the necessity felt to maintain religious and historical values.

Gallery

• Ankara - A view from Cankaya Ankara - A view from Cankaya
• Istanbul - A view of over Asia and Europe Istanbul - A view of over Asia and Europe
• Istanbul - Levent district Istanbul - Levent district
• Izmir - The clock tower in Konak Square
• Izmir - The clock tower by night Izmir - The clock tower by night
• Antalya - Harbour Antalya - Harbour
• Eskişehir - Porsuk River Eskişehir - Porsuk River
• A Bridge across Edirne A Bridge across Edirne

Miscellaneous Topics

• List of Turkey-related topics
• Festivals in Republic of Turkey
• Museums in Republic of Turkey
• Media in Republic of Turkey
• Sports in Turkey
• Holidays in Turkey
• Human rights in Turkey
• Pan-Turkism

External links

References

1. Atreya, Navita, McDowall, David, Ozbolat, "Asylum Seekers from Turkey: the Dangers They Flee", (Report of a mission to Turkey), Perihan, 28 February 2001)

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