On July 26, 2024, Lanzhou University issued the "Notice of Lanzhou University Excellent Doctoral and Master's Degree Thesis Selection Results for the 2023-2024 academic year". The notice pointed out that according to the provisions of the "Lanzhou University excellent doctoral and master's degree thesis selection Measures" (School Research [2016] No. 57), after individual application, recommendation of the degree evaluation sub-committee, graduate school review, expert group review and publicity, Lanzhou University selected a total of 34 excellent doctoral theses and 79 excellent master's theses for the 2023-2024 academic year. Among them, Zhang Junsu, a graduate student of the School of Politics and International Relations of Lanzhou University and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization Research Center of Lanzhou University in the class of 2021, completed his master's degree thesis "Research on Turkish Circle Diplomacy since Erdogan came to power", which was awarded the excellent master's degree thesis of Lanzhou University in 2023-2024 academic year. This is the first master's thesis awarded as university-level excellent dissertation since the School of Politics and International Relations of Lanzhou University was established in 2018. It is reported that the paper has also entered the provincial excellent graduation thesis review process.

Thesis Title: A Study of Turkish Circle Diplomacy Since Erdogan came to Power

Advisor: Professor Zeng Xianghong

Author: Zhang Junsu

Introduction to the paper

The paper holds that most of the existing studies on the explanation of Turkey's diplomatic transformation are based on the analytical framework of western international relations theory, which has a certain adaptability tension with the reality of Turkish diplomacy. The theoretical consequence is that the existing research on the judgment of Turkey's diplomatic behavior appears "rational or not" dispute. On the basis of the relationship theory of world politics, this paper further criticizes the ontological, epistemological and methodological positions of the mainstream theories of international relations in the West, and proposes a diplomatic analysis framework based on the relationship circle structure in combination with Chinese local sociological research and relationship thinking. By using the analytical framework of circle diplomacy, this paper gives a new interpretation of Turkey's foreign policy in recent years. The paper finds that Turkish diplomacy is not blind and irrational speculation, but its management of different relationship circles and the flexible use of relational power. The analytical framework of circle diplomacy has the philosophical basis of relationship and the practical basis of methodological relationalism, embodies the Chinese philosophy of diplomatic theoretical analysis, and has the potential of both humanistic analysis and social science analysis, which may provide useful enlightenment for regional and country studies with Chinese characteristics