Turkey's trade diversification strategy will continue to lean toward Europe and the United States even as Ankara uses its middle power, neutral position to build out trade ties with growing non-aligned powers. In recent years, Turkey's trade strategy has hinged on sourcing affordable imports for its manufacturing sector and finding appropriate markets for its exports, while also leveraging its geography to become a trade hub between Asia, Europe, the Middle East and Africa, and growing into a more advanced manufacturing center. But Turkey has deeper ambitions as part of its economic development program, such as its Distant Countries Strategy, a plan to expand its exports to 18 more geographically distant trade partners like the United States, Mexico, Brazil, South Africa, India and China. Against the backdrop of U.S. tariffs that are restructuring ties between the United States and the rest of the world, Turkey's role as a manufacturing hub makes...
