Since the beginning of the 21st century, the U.S. has mostly strived to secure its international eco-political order.
It is an indispensable struggle for the U.S. to keep this global system alive as it believes that the country is based on liberalism and a market and welfare economy.
With the system, the U.S. tries to protect its leadership in the Atlantic alliance and keeps capitalism sustainable.
This is why the U.S., in an almost paranoid manner, takes on an increasingly intolerant stance on any development that may question the rules of the current regime.
However, with its intolerance and harsh reactions, it damages its image as a leader and causes others to question its role in the global system. Worse, its attitudes cause its partners to look for alternatives in terms of eco-political concerns.
It is, therefore, necessary for the U.S. to move away from such acts and adopt a more constructive approach toward its allies. It needs to explain why it seeks to protect the global system and share its strategies; otherwise, its credibility is likely to suffer in the near future.
In particular, with the use of the dollar as a tool to impose pressure on its partners, the U.S. triggers an acceleration of a possible transition of the current economic system.
At this point, the U.S. is disturbed by the Russian S-400s air defense systems and Moscow’s constructive steps in relations with Ankara.
However, instead of showing hostility, the U.S. needs to find more practical and concrete solutions to active crises, such as the PKK/YPG terrorism issue, in its ties with Turkey. It needs to drive a dialogue mechanism with its NATO ally.
As expressed by Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, Turkey’s involvement in the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) would be perceived as a threat by some regional countries and global powers, who are well aware of the powerful and fruitful effect of the project.
Turkey doesn’t have an eye on any land or right. With its contribution to Eurasia, it only seeks to increase its ability to resolve existing crises, which is a direct threat to some “hidden circles.”
From now on, the U.S.’ choices will either strengthen the very hidden circles or move the world to a brighter future with its new leadership.
OECD and a new challenge
When the Marshall Plan, which was designed to eliminate human, social, economic and spatial destructions caused by World War II, was put into effect in 1948, there was a need for a new international institution for its implementation.
This institution, which was established with a convention signed on April 16, 1948 – which Turkey was also a part of – was the 18-member Organisation for European Economic Co-operation (OEEC).
In order to advance the knowledge and experience of this institution, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) was established with an agreement inked in Paris on Dec. 14, 1960, with the inclusion of the U.S. and Canada.
Since the day it was founded, the OECD has adopted the motto of “better policies for a better life” in order to ensure a real market economy to operate in good governance and maintain prevailing free trade rules in the world economy for its 37 members.
One of the OECD’s primary tasks is to develop policies that ensure the highest sustainable economic growth and employment while maintaining financial stability.
In particular, efforts to raise the standard of living in member countries are prioritized by the organization. Protecting the environment, together with green growth, clean and sustainable energy, efficient use of limited resources, thus creating an infrastructure for healthy economic development in member countries also contribute to the development of the world economy.
Moreover, policies that contribute to the growth of multilateral world trade based on international obligations prepared by various institutions, especially the World Trade Organization (WTO), constitute an important part of the OECD's work.
For the OECD, which is celebrating its 60th anniversary today, the next 50-60 years will bring new challenges that require new and effective policy efforts.
Since the 2008 global financial crisis, the uncertainty and risks in the world economy, the dilemmas and bottlenecks encountered by the science of economics to anticipate and determine and overcome the global crises, also appear as important topics on the OECD’s radar.
In addition, creating an effective and fair solution for the “global debt spiral” – whose scope expanded due to the 2008 crisis and has further been burdened by the pandemic – is also an important challenge for the OECD in terms of its policy-making capacity and capability.
In a period, where big data, digitalization and mobility take up a huge part of the global agenda, the value of the solutions proposed by the OECD to governments, following the requirements of the “Age of Reason,” will be even more important.
