DIPLOMATIC LINKS is a two-year TÜBİTAK-funded project (123K254) that investigates the high-level foreign visits of Middle Eastern countries between 1989 and 2023. It aims to uncover the patterns of visits made by the leaders of Middle Eastern countries, including Turkey, and to distinguish the dynamics that determine these visits for both individual countries and groups of countries. In this context, a comprehensive dataset detailing visits conducted by the leaders of regional countries beginning in 1990 will be assembled, encompassing specifics such as the date of the visit, its duration, and type.

The dataset will be utilized to comprehend the reasons for these visits through logistic regression, and visualization techniques will be applied to reveal their patterns. The impact of conceptual (religion, ethnic affiliation, ideology, etc.), material (economic, military, etc.), and regional (being a regional power, prioritizing regional foreign policy, etc.) variables on leader visits will be quantified using a logistic regression model and a link function. Here, conceptual variables refer to identity-related factors, including religion, ideology, and ethnic origin, while material variables are tangible factors like the economic status of the visited country, resource wealth, and arms exports. The regional variable will disclose whether the target country is in the Middle East, thus indicating potential regionality in leader visits.

Category: 3005 – Innovative Solutions Research Projects Support Program in Social Sciences and Humanities

Project Fund: 360.495 TL

Project Coordinator: Ali Balcı

Researchers: Abdüssamet Pulat

Students: Talha İsmail Duman, Ayşe Hazar, Recep Tayyip Gürler, M. Yasir Bodur, Menderes Kurt ve Melih Yıldız, Rümeysa Ayverdi Varan

Project Outcomes

Journal Articles

Ali Balcı and Abdüssamet Pulat, “Love, Money or Fame? Determinants of Turkey’s Leader Visits”, International Studies Quarterly, 2023 PDF (Ungated)

Ali Balcı, “Determinants of Leader Visits: A Review and Future Directions in Scholarship.” Türkiye Ortadoğu Çalışmaları Dergisi, 11(1): 1-20

Congress Participation

Abdüssamet Pulat, “Türkiye Kimi Neden Ziyaret Ediyor? 1990 Sonrası Türk Liderlerin Yurtdışı Ziyaretlerini Açıklamak”, Tekirdağ Namık Kemal Üniversitesi, İktisadi ve İdari Bilimler Fakültesi III. Uluslararası İlişkiler Sempozyumu, 29-30 Mayıs 2023, Tekirdağ, Türkiye

Ali Balcı, “Explaining Turkey’s High-Level Foreign Visits: Identity, Interests, and Regional Status Concerns”, The 16th Eisa Pan-European Conference On International Relations (Pec), University Of Potsdam, Germany, 5-9 September 2023.

Ali Balcı, “Türkiye’nin Üst Düzey Lider Ziyaretleri: Hangi Ülkelere Neden Gidiyorlar?, Siyasi İlimler Türk Derneği II. Ulusal Siyaset Bilimi Kongresi, 7-8 Ekim 2023, Bilkent Üniversitesi, Ankara, Türkiye