Opinion polls show that the Turkish people now seek, under the influence of the prolonged economic crisis, a new party or movement. Recep Tayyip Erdogan is bidding to address this need with a new party in the offing and ANAP is trying to steal a march on it. The following article is an analysis of the future developments and pitfalls in this competition. The biggest pitfall concerns the victor last week of the ANAP national convention, Mesut Yilmaz. His performance was up to expectations and forecasts of Pulse, but there were also some signs of a major policy shift on his part.  

The priorities of the national security strategy have been under revision by the military and civilian members of the NSC for the last few months and this month’s sitting of the Council was a milestone in giving it the finishing touches. As revealed by PM Ecevit, Islamic fundamentalism and PKK separatism are no longer the top two items on the NSC’s agenda, but other topics, concerning the economy and the amendment of the Constitution in preparation for Turkey’s potential full membership to the EU, are. Deputy PM Mesut Yilmaz’s call for public debates on national security was in some ways a misguided step because public opinion is not shaped by the realities of national security but by a Disinformation Mechanism in Turkey. Nevertheless, useful results emerged from the NSC about giving a spur to Turkey’s constitutional amendments from Yilmaz’s initiative and for the prevention of the “dolarisation” of the country.