1989 crisis in the relationship between Turkey and Bulgaria: An analysis from the aspect of crisis managament

This thesis examines the crisis between Turkey and Bulgaria which took place in the years of between 1984 and 1989. The relationship between those countries was going on in the frame of good neighbouring. By the end of 1984 Bulgaria began to see the Turkish minority as threat. On the purpose of disturbation this threat Bulgaria began to assimilation policy towards Turkish minority. Turkey demand from Bulgaria to end the breach of status quo which she creates in the favor of herself by assimilation of Turks. But Bulgaria didn?t listen Turkey?s demands and went on its assimilation campaign. This case created existence threat of Turkish minority in the minds of Turkish decision makers. By getting the higher level of this threat in the minds of Turkish decision makers a foreign policy crisis occured. A foreign policy crisis makes decision makers to decide in accordence with the actions of the advesary. Decision makers has preferences in the process of taking decisions. These preferences affect the all process of the crisis management from the determining of the threat to the choosing of the intruments which would be used. While determining the preferences not just decision makers have important roles but also national/international public opinion, the behaviors of the third actors, international system has important roles. These factos can limit the capability of the decision makers or provide opportunity to take decisions in a better environmentBy focusing on those issues it is possible to see why the relationship take the form of the crisis.By the way crisis are the situations of disagreements between countries. To understand those disagreements we will look them from the aspect of theinternational relations theories. But this thesis primarly is foced on the theory of the Neoclassical Realism which gives importance of the perceptions, characters of leaders domestic factors and the relative power. This theory also makes to force the using of the foreign policy anaysis. By this way it is possible to see the effects of the actors on other actors.Crisis are process of which consist of the actions of the actors. They have different characters like geography, the source of events. From that point they have also different results so it will be useful to make a classification of crisis. In the process of the crisis learders come across with the diffuculty of the crisis management. While they have to protect their national interests they also need to get the main requirements. So the strategy which is adopted by leaders affect the resutls of the crisis.In this work the 1989 migration crisis which marked the badness of the relationship between Turkey and Bulgaria, will be examined from the aspect of the implemetions of decision makers. By this way it will be possible to understand why crisis occur and end. Key Words: Crisis management, foreign policy crisis, dispute resolution, 1989 Turkish emigration from Bulgaria.