This research examines Turkish foreign trade with a view toward assessing the significance of exports and imports to the Turkish economy, and in order to assess the foreign trading position of the United States with respect to Turkey. The following section of this research analyzes the economic and political environments in Turkey. This analysis is followed by an evaluation of Turkey's foreign trade.
Political stability in modern Turkey began to crumble in 1970 (Rinehart, 1989, pp. 64-65). As the political party structure began to fracture, it became increasingly difficult to form a stable government. As a consequence, government turnover in Turkey rose to a high rate and political terrorism became increasingly violent and intensive. In 1980, control of the country passed to the military in a coup de 'etat (Seeley, 1989, 260-261). A new constitution was implemented in 1982.
The junta eventually outlawed all existing political parties and banned all former politicians from future participation in the Turkish government (Seeley, 1989, pp. 260-261). The ban on all political activity was lifted in 1983, and new political parties began forming, although many of the new parties were vetoed by the ruling military junta. It was not until the fall of 1991, however, that elections for a civilian government were again permitted.
In the 1991 general election, the ruling Motherland Party was defeated (Turkey, 1991, pp. S5-S7). Although no single political party elected a majority of the parliament, a coalition government was formed by the True Path Party, with the highest number of seats in parliament, and the Social Democrats, with the third most parliamentary seats. Four of the five political parties represented in the current Turkish parliament state that they are committed in principle to a free-market economy, although only the Motherland Party attaches no conditions to such a commitment.
Since 1959, the economic policy ...