Turkey’s Contributions to Security Sector Reform (SSR) in Conflict-Affected Countries

Executive Summary

Since the early 1990s, Turkey has played an active role in international peace operations by contributing military personnel, expertise, and technical assistance to numerous United Nations (UN) and North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) missions. Its participation ranged from peacekeeping operations in Somalia to extensive involvement in the Balkans, establishing Turkey as a significant contributor to international peacekeeping efforts.

During the early 2000s, a series of international and domestic developments led Turkey to broaden its approach to peace operations beyond traditional military contributions. The global impact of the September 11 terrorist attacks and the Justice and Development Party's (AKP) rise to power in 2002 fundamentally reshaped Turkish foreign policy and expanded the country's engagement in both security and humanitarian dimensions of peacebuilding.

Turkey's participation in the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) mission in Afghanistan marked a turning point in this transformation. By assuming leadership roles in both civilian and military components of the mission, Turkey adopted a more comprehensive peacekeeping approach that incorporated elements of security sector reform alongside conventional military support.

At the same time, Turkey pursued a more proactive foreign policy centred on humanitarian diplomacy, development assistance, the promotion of governance institutions, stronger commercial relations, and cultural engagement with neighbouring regions. As a result, Turkey significantly expanded both its humanitarian assistance and long-term development aid to conflict-affected countries. While Afghanistan, South Sudan, Somalia, and more recently Syria became major recipients of Turkish assistance, the country's official and private aid activities gradually extended across multiple regions, reaching countries from Myanmar to Haiti.