Kürkçüoğlu, ÖmerEmbel, Ersin2022-03-242022-03-242010http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12575/77992This Thesis deals with Turkey?s policy towards the Western European integration between 1945 and 1959. Its main hypothesis is that Turkey, who tried to assure US assistance for her security and development requirements, attempted to join the economic, political and military structures established in Western Europe since 1947. Turkey?s policy towards Europe in that period is analysed in three chapters:The 1945-1947 period, studied in the first chapter, can be considered to be a time of re-construction both in Europe and Turkey. In Europe, the East-West division became evident, and in the Western half of the continent, the idea of integration gained significance, particularly thanks to the efforts of non-governmental organisations. Turkey, with a cautious overall approach towards those efforts, changed her own political regime to introduce a multi-party system in order not to be excluded from the democratic West. In her foreign affairs, Turkey, participated in a number of organs related with Europe within the UN framework.The second chapter covers the 1947-1952 period, and deals with the institutionalisation process in Western Europe, which was particularly stipulated by the Marshall Plan, and Turkey?s stance towards those developments. As it was understood that the US aid would only be secured within the framework of the Western European institutional structures, thereby, Turkey made efforts to become a member of those organisations. The European objections to Turkey?s membership on political, economic and military grounds had been met, on the basis of the US?s strategic evaluations regarding the Cold War. Therefore, Turkey became a member of three major organizations (OEEC, the Council of Europe and NATO), by completing the accession process in 1952.The third chapter covers the period 1952-1959. Since 1952, Turkey adopted a low profile policy towards Western Europe, having secured her close ties with the US and her place in the main European organisations. Turkey has always attached importance to the principle of national sovereignty and has distanced herself from the supranational organizations since the establishment of the ECSO. Instead, as a ?part of the West?, she tended to form security systems in her region backing the containment policies of the US.After the mid-1950?s, as a result of the downturn of the economic conditions within the country, the problems faced in receiving foreign aid and deterioration of the relations with Greece due to the Cyprus problem, Turkey made a foreign policy attack by applying to the EEC for membership in 1959.trTürkiyeAvrupaTürk dış politikasıdoctoralThesis