Between a rock and a hard place: What is Turkey’s place in the transatlantic market?

At the recent G8 summit, the EU and the US kicked off negotiations for a comprehensive Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), which, if successful, would lead to an estimated GDP increase of some $180 billion in five years. The transatlantic market would easily be the largest integrated market in the world, with the US and the EU already accounting for nearly half of the world’s GDP and 30% of global trade. The TTIP would also enhance the USA and the EU’s ability to set global standards – perhaps the real prize at stake – and the spill-over effect in terms of the capacity of EU and US firms to compete in their relevant sectors in third-country markets should not be underestimated either.