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ISTIAS LEGAL ANALYSIS SERIES
The ISTIAS Legal Analysis Series is a periodical publication of the Istanbul Institute for Advanced Studies (ISTIAS) dedicated to advancing rigorous and original engagement with legal affairs in their broadest sense, exploring new avenues of legal inquiry while addressing pressing contemporary debates across domestic and international contexts. It offers analytically grounded examinations of complex and often contested legal questions, providing clear and critical explanations of intricate legal issues, while moving beyond description to interrogate the foundations, limits, and evolving trajectories of legal frameworks. With a particular emphasis on the intersections of law and politics, the Series situates legal developments within broader structures of power and governance, illuminating how law both shapes and is shaped by political realities. At the same time, it serves as a platform for original and forward-looking discussions, promoting innovative and critical—where necessary, radical—approaches to the progressive development of law, particularly international law, by challenging orthodoxy and opening space for alternative normative visions. Accommodating contributions of varying length and scope, from comprehensive studies to focused analytical essays, the ISTIAS Legal Analysis Series fosters a dynamic intellectual space that combines scholarly depth with timely and accessible analysis.
Spectrum: International Law As Permission, Regulation, And Restriction
(Part II)
17 May 2026
By Cenap Çakmak
Before examining the concrete forms in which international law operates in practice, it is necessary to situate the relationship between law and politics within a broader analytical spectrum. This spectrum illustrates the extent to which legal norms are activated or constrained by political authority. At one extreme lies absolute anarchy, where the absence of an effective political authority to uphold common rules, coordinate expectations, or ensure harmony leaves the law vulnerable to fragmentation and lawlessness. At the other extreme lies an all-powerful political authority where authority has become so dominant that it absorbs the autonomy of law, reducing legal norms to mere instruments of power and leaving no meaningful space for law to discipline or constrain behavior. The practical reality of international law is shaped not at these two extremes, but in the broad and contentious space between them. In this intermediate zone, where normative commitments interact with political interests, institutional capacities, and struggles over legitimacy, applicable international law takes three distinct forms, each reflecting a different configuration of legal authority and political power.
The Interaction Between Politics and Law: Understanding the Nature and Dynamics of the Legal Framework Governing the Use of Force (Part I)
28 April 2026
By Cenap Çakmak
Current debates on the use of force often revolve around a misguided question: What does international law say, and who has violated it? While legally relevant, this framework offers only a superficial diagnosis. Violations are not proof of the absence of law; rather, they are a likely occurrence within any legal order. Analytically more useful questions concern how and why international law functions, under what political conditions it succeeds, when it fails, and what kind of order it actually creates.
This policy brief argues that the so-called “rule-based international order” in the realm of the use of force has never existed as a fully coherent and enforceable legal order in a supranational sense. Instead, the legal framework has always evolved through a dynamic interaction between ideal law and the law in practice, mediated by political authority, institutional design, and power asymmetries. Rather than collapsing, the system is undergoing a process of transformation that reflects how it was historically constructed.
This article develops a spectrum-based framework that conceptualizes applicable international law in three ways: permission, regulation, and restriction. This framework helps explain why the prohibition of unilateral use of force appears robust in principle but fragile in practice. ...
Competing with the Sun: An Examination of Protectionism and Consumer Welfare in Modern Turkey
23 February 2026
By Murat UstaoÄŸlu
Frederic Bastiat, one of economics' most elegant satirists, consigned the arguments of free trade opponents to the dusty shelves of history with a single allegory in his 1845 “Petition from the Candlemakers.” In the petition, candle makers appeal to the government for protection against an “unfair competitor.” This competitor is the sun, which illuminates everything at no cost and undermines candle sales. The producers demand that all windows be closed, curtains drawn, and sunlight prohibited from entering buildings. Their argument is familiar: if windows are closed, more candles will be produced, more workers will be employed, and the economy will flourish.
With this absurdity, Bastiat shows that protectionism actually rewards inefficient producers at the expense of consumers, rather than promoting social welfare. Today in Turkey, many restrictions, from Booking.com to Uber, from Airbnb regulations to e-commerce platforms like Temu, are actually modern attempts to “close the windows.”
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In today's economic politics, Bastiat's sun is digital platforms and global e-commerce networks.
Academic Existence in the Age of Artificial Intelligence
11 February 2026
By Veysel Bozkurt
For over a decade, I've been searching for an artificial intelligence (AI) expert to analyze large-scale datasets. I had several interviews but didn't get any results. ChatGPT arrived in late 2022 and became a beacon of hope. Then came Claude, Gemini, Perplexity... Each with a different skill set, a different personality.
As an academic, watching this rapid development was incredibly exciting at first. Until then, AI had always been “something coming soon” in academic life. Now, it had become part of our daily practice. I had about three years left until retirement age. If everything went as planned, my intention was to write the books I had been thinking about for years during my retirement. At first, I thought AI could accelerate this process. Just imagine: you load hundreds of thousands of pages of information into artificial intelligence and write higher-quality books based on a much broader literatureI could scan more articles than I could ever read on my own, request comparisons, and establish theoretical connections that I felt were missing...
Why Does Inflation Remain Persistent In Turkey?
9 December 2025
By ÇaÄŸrı Emre Mermi
Inflation is defined as a sustained increase in the general price level, reflecting the erosion of purchasing power. Modern macroeconomic theory categorizes inflation into demand-pull, cost-push, and expectations-driven forms. Especially in emerging markets, inflation is shaped not only by cyclical factors but also by institutional quality, policy credibility, exchange-rate pass-through, and fiscal-monetary coordination. Turkey’s experience mirrors this broader framework. After chronic high inflation episodes in the 1970s–1990s, the post-2001 stabilization program—founded on inflation targeting, banking reform, fiscal consolidation and increased central bank independence—reduced inflation from over 30% to 6.2% in 2012. However, beginning in 2013, inflation dynamics reversed. By 2021–2023, Turkey recorded one of the highest inflation rates among G20 and OECD economies. Persistent inflation in Turkey is therefore not the result of a single macroeconomic imbalance.
Institutions are defined as social structures established by human beings with the intention of fulfilling specific objectives. These entities manifest in diverse forms, including companies, schools, hospitals, government agencies, religious institutions, and non-governmental organizations. The question arises as to whether these entities possess a morality that is distinct from that of the individuals who create and manage them. Alternatively, could the concept of corporate morality be considered as the aggregate of the moral actions of the individuals within the institution? Institutional morality is defined as the values, norms, and standards of behavior that an institution adopts while conducting its activities. The historical evolution of organizational morality has coincided with the emergence of modern organizations. The advent of large corporations, government agencies, and increasingly complex organizations, particularly in the aftermath of the Industrial Revolution, gave rise to novel moral challenges.
Georgia’s Cyclical Dilemma: Brussels or Moscow?
31 January 2025
By Yahya Adow Ibrahim
Recent elections in Georgia have once again drawn attention to the country's uncertain position between its European aspirations and the imminent Russian shadow of influence.Since the collapse of the Soviet Union and its independence, Georgia has been navigating a delicate geopolitical balance between Brussels and Moscow. Georgia has been regarded as one of the most pro-European Union states in the region; however, the results of the recent elections, the (s)election of the President, and the new administration's decision to suspend EU accession talks until 2028 have led to a reevaluation of the country's relationship with the European Union. As President Salome Zourabichvili departs from office, the question of Georgia's ability to chart a stable course forward remains unanswered, as the country continues to grapple with this persistent geopolitical quandary. The political landscape of Georgia is marked by pervasive political polarization, democratic challenges, and societal divisions, with the two dominant political parties being the Georgian Dream, the ruling party, and the United National Movement, the pro-EU opposition.The Georgian Dream Party was established in 2012 and has been in power for over a decade. Its founder is billionaire Bidzina Ivanishvili, who is pro-Russian and formerly served as Prime Minister.
Which Codes Should Ensure “Transitional Justice” in Syria?
24 December 2024
By M. Buhari Çetinkaya
The Syrian regime, which had been in power for nearly 55 years under the leadership of the father and then the son Assad, has now collapsed.This period is likely to be remembered as a time of significant atrocities, human rights violations, and crimes against humanity committed during the civil war that emerged in the aftermath of the Arab Spring in 2011.Some of the perpetrators of these actions, notably Assad and his family, have found refuge in other countries to evade justice. However, the majority of these perpetrators continue to reside in Syria, and the primary concern of the new authorities will be to repair the damage caused by this period, particularly after 2011. One of the most pressing questions is how justice will be served while the past is being held to account. Societies that have endured oppressive regimes and grave human rights violations may adopt distinct practices to establish justice and construct a safer, more peaceful, and more prosperous future.In ordinary times, individuals who perpetrate crimes are subjected to legal proceedings and punishment in accordance with established legal procedures. In such periods, the justice system predominantly functions in accordance with the punitive or distributive justice approach, thereby ensuring the stability and security of the state.
Rebuilding a Syrian Nation and State After Civil War: Prospects and Challenges
13 December 2024
By Cenap Çakmak and Murat UstaoÄŸlu
On an unexpected full-scale move, major armed groups that claimed to be legitimate opposition were able to topple the long-standing Assad regime and take political control in the country within a strikingly short period of time. There is cautious optimism both among the Syrians, particularly those who have been brutalized under the previous regime, as well as within the international community. Many questions remain to be addressed, including as to how the state and nation should be rebuilt, whether radicalism and extremism will reign in the future of the country, and whether political stability will ever be maintained. Any analysis that claims to offer insights into the new state of affairs in the country needs to acknowledge the fact that there are a vast number of uncertainties, particularly in terms of the composition of the opposition forces, their true intentions and of whether their rule will be endorsed by the regional powers, international institutions and the large segments of the Syrian society. The authors, hoping to contribute to the potential discussions on these major questions, summarize their findings that they believe are relevant to the ongoing process, based on a comprehensive research study they conducted during the initial years of the Syrian uprisings, with the participation of political and social opposition groups....
The feud between the US and China has seen multiple highs and lows; the sentiment of being anti-communist (which usually means anti-Russian and Chinese) is embedded within the American government identity, and the fight against it has never stopped. In a post-WWII world, proxy wars have set the trend for nations to protect their interests and security, as opposed to wars that completely drain states of all their resources. For major powers, spreading influence has always been a main objective with different dimensions, whether cultural, technological, economic, political, or environmental, which we will probably see more of in the future. China is fiercely challenging the US, which remains the reigning hegemon and superpower in various aspects. The upcoming AI revolution contributes to the growing polarization between the US and China, as the latter has access to raw materials such as gallium and germanium, and holds half of the world's supply of rare minerals.Meanwhile, the US retains the blueprint for key technologies such as microchips and semiconductors. If China fails to procure these materials, it runs the risk of falling behind.
Notwithstanding the plethora of instances that positively illuminate the labor market, the agenda is occupied with pessimistic expectations for the near future. The cartoon that appeared on the October 2017 cover of The New Yorker magazine depicts humanoid robots traveling to work and presenting alms to a beggar. This particular cartoon effectively illustrates certain concerns that occupy the human mind regarding this subject. A comprehensive analysis of the relationship between human and machine labor, as well as the manner in which workers engage with sophisticated production machinery, is published in the same issue of the magazine. An analysis is conducted to determine the effects of actively implementing contemporary automation technologies in the manufacturing process. Additionally, the potential ramifications of technological advancements on the labor market are assessed (De Stefano, 2019). These analyses, which were carried out just prior to the advent of AI as a paradigm shift in technology, suggest apprehensions regarding the imminent consequences of technological advancements on the labor market.
Both the development of Kelsen's political beliefs and the influences of the political milieu of his day can be observed in his writings on the nature and importance of democracy. Despite not being a political theorist, Kelsen was careful to keep his legal philosophy intact within the political framework, which allowed him to present a cohesive approach in this work. In a book that focuses on the nature and value of democracy, Kelsen actually emphasized and defended the normative principles and features of the constitutional order against the possible implications of his identity as a positivist jurist. In doing so, Kelsen also made an effort to uphold the principles of the purity of law theory while addressing and elucidating the politics of the law. Indeed, Kelsen's method shows that his concept of the "purity" of the legal system has to do with enhancing its political responsibility and activity. To put it another way, Kelsen argues that democracy and the integrity of the law as expressions of political will do not necessarily have to conflict with one another; rather, they frequently do so and even strengthen one another while remaining independent.
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