AN EVALUATION OF TURKEY'S WESTERN BALKANS POLICY UNDER THE AKP AND PROSPECTS FOR THE POST-DAVUTOGLU ERA

Abstract

This article argues that in the last decade there is a visible decline in the political, normative and economic power of the European Union (EU) as a dominant actor in the Western Balkans (WB). Particularly the slowing down of the EU's hegemonic project of Europeanization in the region created space for maneuver for other global and regional players. In this power vacuum, Turkey, alongside with Russia and China has aspired to play a central role in a region that is drifting into multi-polarity. This study aims to analyze Turkey's relations with the Western Balkans under the AKP Government.