Turkey as a Catalyst for the Alliance of Civilizations

The Alliance of Civilizations (AoC) project offers opportunity spaces for the United Nations as well as for Spain and Turkey to tackle the issues of radicalism and animosities between different cultures. This article puts the AoC in its historical and political context by analyzing the relevance of Turkish foreign policy and the ruling Justice and Development Party)s (JDP) orientation to domestic and foreign affairs. The AoC fits within the framework of JDP\u27s inclinations to solve all problems with its neighbors as well as with its manifest or latent Muslim identity. The major question is whether Turkey continues to perceive itself as a Western or Muslim country