Insight Turkey / Reviews

Cultural Change in Post-Migrant Societies: Re-Imagining Communities through Arts and Cultural Activities

Tue, 31 Mar 2026 17:44:00 GMT

The book’s focus is on migrants enacting within structures that emerged from nation-building, and on how people socialized in these structures are confronted with migrants, through a cultural change lens.

Until We Have Won Our Liberty: South Africa after Apartheid

Tue, 31 Mar 2026 17:42:00 GMT

Post-apartheid South Africa’s political transformation has been studied in a broad spectrum. Though often credited as a miracle, the course and quality of South African democracy have remained a contested issue.

Islam in Global Modernity: Sociological Theory and the Diversity of Islamic Modernities

Tue, 31 Mar 2026 17:40:00 GMT

Islamic Modernities presents an intellectual attempt to rethink the entangled relationship between Islam and modernity from a sociological perspective.

Sector-Based Action against Corruption: A Guide for Organisations and Professionals

Tue, 31 Mar 2026 17:39:00 GMT

Unlike many anti-corruption works that focus on national or transnational reforms, this book emphasizes sector-specific and organizational efforts.

I’m Here to Ask for Your Vote: How Presidential Campaign Visits Influence Voters

Tue, 31 Mar 2026 17:37:00 GMT

Drawing on U.S. elections from 2008 to 2020, Christopher Devine, an associate professor of political science at the University of Dayton, explores the historical development, strategic significance, and electoral consequences of face-to-face campaign visits.

Redefining Genocide in Gaza: A Crime Without a Name?

Tue, 31 Mar 2026 17:34:00 GMT

Since October 7, 2023, over 70,000 people have been killed in Gaza, and factoring in indirect deaths, the total mortality as of July 2024 has been estimated at 186,000 by analyses published in The Lancet.

A Climate of Truth: Why We Need It and How to Get It

Wed, 31 Dec 2025 15:58:00 GMT

In A Climate of Truth: The Science, the Solutions, and the Road to a Better Future, Mike Berners-Lee offers a timely and accessible reflection on the current state of the climate emergency and the collective narratives surrounding it.

Defying Small-State Orthodoxy: The UAE’s Outlier Trajectory toward Middle-Power Status

Wed, 31 Dec 2025 15:46:00 GMT

By analyzing the three works above, this article argues that the United Arab Emirates’ post-2011 transformation cannot be explained within the behavioral boundaries traditionally assigned to small states. Rather than conforming to the passivity, risk aversion, or alliance dependency that the small-state literature prescribes, the UAE has demonstrated a sustained pattern of strategic autonomy, assertive interventionism, and identity-driven statecraft.

Power of Bonding and Non-Western Soft Power Strategy in Iran: Comparing China and India’s Engagement

Wed, 31 Dec 2025 11:39:00 GMT

In an era where Western-centric soft power strategies dominate global politics, the soft power practices of non-Western countries are often overlooked.

Algeria Politics and Society from the Dark Decade to the Hirak

Wed, 31 Dec 2025 11:34:00 GMT

Willis’s study fills a crucial gap in the literature with its comprehensive examination of the postcolonial period. His extensive use of primary sources enhances both the richness of the data and its analytical power.

Hidden Hate: The Resilience of Xenophobia

Wed, 31 Dec 2025 11:26:00 GMT

Hidden Hate: The Resilience of Xenophobia by Mathew Creighton revalues xenophobia as a dynamic and multidimensional phenomenon rather than simply overt hostility toward immigrants.

Understanding the Syrian Refugee Crisis in Turkey: Perspective from Actors

Wed, 31 Dec 2025 11:18:00 GMT

The book Understanding the Syrian Refugee Crisis in Turkey: Perspective from Actors by Emrah Atar, a scholar with expertise in migration and urban governance, analyzes the Syrian refugee crisis’s influence on Türkiye’s healthcare and education system.

Batı Dışı Dünya: Hindistan, Güney Afrika ve Türkiye’de Dış Politika Ufku

Wed, 15 Oct 2025 15:19:00 GMT

Many states seek to play roles that exceed their material capabilities. Therefore, comprehending the complexities of foreign policymaking necessitates an examination that transcends mere economic and military powers, encompassing culture, religion, historical legacy, and self-consciousness as influential factors.

The Politics of Policy Analysis

Wed, 15 Oct 2025 15:17:00 GMT

The book offers a broader perspective on the policy analysis process and critiques the classical five-step policy analysis method. According to the author, a five-step policy analysis represents pragmatic responses to solve political problems, but he points out that the approach remains far from providing a full understanding of the complexity of policy making

The Rise and Fall of the Eagle: An Assessment of the Liberal World Order

Wed, 15 Oct 2025 15:15:00 GMT

U.S. hegemony was steadily established over the years through security alliances, international financial institutions, and democratic rhetoric, all favoring the liberal paradigm. The U.S. unipolar moment following the fall of the USSR in 1991 was a boastful period, but the 1990s were a crucial decade.

Changing Security Paradigm in West Asia: Regional and International Responses

Wed, 15 Oct 2025 15:12:00 GMT

Although discussions on the regional policies of the European Union are addressed in the context of internal dynamics, more concrete policy suggestions could have been presented. In addition, the connections between some chapters could have been established more strongly, thus providing a better overall integrity for the book.

Dış Politikada Türkiye Doktrini

Wed, 15 Oct 2025 15:09:00 GMT

Debates surrounding the orientation of Turkish foreign policy, particularly discussions on its strategic anchor and claims of an axis shift, remain relevant to both academic and policy circles.

Al-Aqsa Flood as a Turning Point: Historical Roots, Israel’s Response, and the Colonial Question

Wed, 15 Oct 2025 15:09:00 GMT

These three books bring together the multi-layered causes of the al-Aqsa Flood Operation, the destructive nature of Israel’s response, and the regional and global consequences of the event, offering readers a comprehensive and critical understanding of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. The operation went beyond being merely a military attack, dealing a severe blow to Israel’s international legitimacy, reshaping regional power dynamics, and exposing the colonial reality faced by the Palestinian people on the global stage. These works fill gaps in the existing literature and serve as an indispensable reference for anyone seeking to understand the future trajectory of the conflict. They are essential for comprehending the profound and lasting transformations that the al-Aqsa Flood has brought about, not only in the Middle East but across the entire world.

Mapping the Lines in Turkey-U.S. Relations: Making the Vulnerable Partnership

Fri, 25 Jul 2025 18:06:00 GMT

Interestingly, Mapping the Fault Lines in Turkey-U.S. Relations goes beyond its direct focus and resonates with international relations themes at a broader level, particularly within the African context. The emphasis on the power dynamics in the text, characterized by the tensions between foreign actors and regional players, mirrors obstacles encountered by African states navigating post-colonial legacies and contemporary international partnerships

Arming the Sultan: German Arms Trade and Personal Diplomacy in the Ottoman Empire before World War I

Fri, 25 Jul 2025 18:03:00 GMT

The book argues that arms trade agreements in the last century of the Ottoman Empire were products of a complex network of influential figures, including Ottoman pashas, German military advisors, and even the Kaiser, who actively lobbied to shape the outcomes of these negotiations. Unlike other foreign powers, the German government actively intervened to promote its armament companies. Ultimately, these efforts achieved their objectives and a monopoly position for German armament corporations in the Ottoman market.

Data Grab: The New Colonialism of Big Tech and How to Fight Back

Fri, 25 Jul 2025 17:48:00 GMT

The book challenges the dominant mindset that historical colonialism is long gone, instead asserting that today’s data grab is a continuation of the colonial land grab that reorganized the world’s resources centuries ago, exploiting the masses and placing opportunities in the hands of the few. Historical colonialism and data colonialism are two parallel and deeply interconnected phenomena.

Deterrence under Uncertainty: Artificial Intelligence and Nuclear Warfare

Fri, 25 Jul 2025 17:42:00 GMT

Once based on the bilateral symmetry of the Cold War, the logic of deterrence now faces layered ambiguity, cognitive manipulation, and pervasive uncertainty as the international system transforms into a multipolar and multi-domain order with overlapping spheres of technological, strategic, and normative contestation. The fundamental tenets of nuclear deterrence are under pressure in accordance with this new reality, in which cyber and artificial intelligence (AI) technologies are speeding up, improving the accuracy, and expanding the scope of conflict.

Artificial Intelligence “Arms Dynamics”: The Case of the U.S. and China Rivalry

Fri, 25 Jul 2025 17:35:00 GMT

The book argues that artificial intelligence (AI) is not only redefining the balance of power in the international system but also reshaping the very dynamics of global rivalry. Özdemir asserts that hegemonic competition will no longer be limited to political or economic spheres but will extend deeply into the technological realm, with AI at its cor

Reshaping National Security and the Future of Warfare in the Age of Competitive Artificial Intelligence

Fri, 25 Jul 2025 17:10:00 GMT

National security in the age of competitive AI is evolving into a structure that transcends conventional threat paradigms, encompassing uncertainty, interdependence, and complex multi-actor dynamics. While the integration of AI into military strategy appears inevitable, ignoring its strategic and ethical consequences risks triggering irreversible security crises. One of the most urgent questions in the coming era of international relations, therefore, is how to preserve peace, security, and stability in a world increasingly defined by competitive artificial intelligence.

Common Immunity: Biopolitics in the Age of the Pandemic

Mon, 14 Apr 2025 14:49:00 GMT

Contrary to some expectations, the book does not investigate the states’ underlying interests during the COVID-19 pandemic, nor does it address conspiracy theories surrounding the outbreak. Instead, the author draws on the history of medicine and science and fundamental principles of philosophy to critically reflect on the emergence of biopolitics as a concept. He takes a retrospective approach to examining its previous definitions and their implications for contemporary policy frameworks.

Leading the Digital Workforce: IT Leadership Peak Performance and Agility

Mon, 14 Apr 2025 14:41:00 GMT

The role of information and communication technologies (ICTs) has substantially improved economies and financial flows and has even cultivated social life. The COVID-19 pandemic has particularly accelerated digitalization, tech-intensive ventures, and automation. Unequivocally, contemporary technologies (including the internet, blockchain, Web 3.0, DAO, and NFTs.) further enhance efficacy in business practices, production, and supply processes and concurrently facilitate the digitalization processes. In the meantime, along with the digitalization trend and digital workforce, the digital transformation of workplaces and the changing nature of workplaces also bring forth new challenges.

A New Structural Transformation of the Public Sphere and Deliberative Politics

Mon, 14 Apr 2025 13:51:00 GMT

The study analyses the new structural transformation of the public sphere and deliberative politics in the digital age.

A Brief Global History of the Left

Mon, 14 Apr 2025 13:24:00 GMT

The main aim of the book is to highlight the historical and ideological diversity within leftist terminology, contribute to understanding this diversity, and analyze in depth the challenges facing contemporary leftist movements.

The Flexible India: Yoga’s Cultural and Political Tensions

Mon, 14 Apr 2025 13:14:00 GMT

The increasing popularity of yoga coincided with India’s efforts to enhance its global economic, political, and cultural recognition. In this way, India, especially under Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) rule since 2014, took yoga as an important cultural and religious instrument to promote Hindu nationalist ideas, or Hindutva, which believes India is, in its essence, a Hindu nation, and tried to spread this by media and popular culture and link it to the world stage.

BRICS and the Question of Order: Power Shifts, Internal Divisions, and Future Prospects

Mon, 14 Apr 2025 12:36:00 GMT

Is BRICS a cohesive and robust organization capable of shaping an alternative global order, or does it remain a fragmented and informal grouping constrained by structural challenges to internal unity? This issue lies at the heart of recent scholarly debates and is the central focus of three books reviewed in this article: The Role of BRICS in Large-Scale Armed Conflict: Building a Multi-Polar World Order by Malte Brosig, Russia, BRICS, and the Disruption of Global Order by Rachel S. Salzman, and Future of the BRICS and the Role of Russia and China by Junuguru Srinivas.