ИСТИНА

The paper explores Turkey’s economic outreach to the Asia-Pacific which constitutes a crucial part of Ankara’s foreign policy diversification. Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu unveiled the “Asia Anew” initiative in August 2019, a clear sign that Ankara was seeking to be more effective in Asia. Turkey’s involvement as a sectoral dialogue partner with ASEAN is key since the Southeast Asian region (home to more than 650 million people) is becoming a more important market. In addition, Turkey has two important free trade agreements with two ASEAN countries, Singapore and Malaysia. Turkey has been actively engaged in FTA negotiations with Indonesia, Japan, Thailand. Turkey’s strong trade and investment ties with EU countries, increasing partnerships in different sectors with the United States, historical engagements with the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) economies, and expanding economic relations with the Asia-Pacific region can help the country to become an alternative hub in the long-term remaking of supply chains. This would allow Turkey to get a bigger slice of the pie in a re-designed and more digitalized international trade system.