News Analysis: Turkish new government faces security, economic challenges

Turkey's Justice and Development Party (AKP), which won a landslide victory in Sunday's election, is facing a series of security and economic challenges.

"One of the most important issues the new government will have to tackle is battling with the threat of terrorism that has claimed hundreds of lives since July," Mehmet Seyfettin Erol, professor of international relations at Ankara-based Gazi University, told Xinhua.

SECURITY CONCERNS

He pointed out that security concerns will inevitably influence the economy, exerting a negative impact on the confidence of investors and consumers.

"It has to be an overall and comprehensive approach by the incoming government in a way that will address all these challenges at the same time," he added.

The interim-government, mostly staffed by the AKP members, also signaled that their priorities will be on security and economic reforms.

"Our effective fight against terror will go on with the same determination," Deputy Prime Minister Yalcin Akdogan vowed Tuesday, when a cross-border air campaign was staged on the hideouts of the outlawed Kurdish Workers' Party (PKK) militants in Northern Iraq.

The settlement process, jointly launched by the Turkish government and the PKK in 2012 to end the three-decade-long conflict, was suspended as the PKK refused to disarm and started attacking on the Turkish security forces in July, killing 150 security members in the fresh clashes.

Violent elements that had poisoned the settlement process must be taken out before the settlement talks are put back on track, Akdogan stressed after the election.

In addition, Islamic State (IS) militants have been another concern. The two suicide bombings in the Turkish capital and the country's southeast region killed 136 people in recent months, mostly targeting Kurdish groups.

The government has been cracking down on IS forces in recent months.

ECONOMIC WOES

The pressing economy is another major challenge for the new government.

Turkey's political risk has been lowered with the AKP's winning a clear majority in election, but structural reforms are needed to address its economic concerns such as Turkish lira's tumble, sluggish growth, soaring unemployment, inflation, and chronic current account deficit.

Economists who have long been managing Turkish economy such as former deputy prime minister Ali Babacan and former finance minister Mehmet Simsek may be replaced in the new government's economic management team, mostly by loyalists to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

The AKP government has an ambition to adopt policies that will boost high economic growth, said economist Seyfetting Gursel, while the other choice is to have Babacan remain as leader of the economic management team, pursuing a balanced but rather low-growth strategy.

In the meantime, the Turkish lira has lost almost one-third of its value compared to the U.S. dollar this year alone.

Turkey's unemployment rate was 9.8 percent in July with nearly 3 million people looking for jobs, according to latest official data.

CONSTITUTION MAKING

Another issue that resurfaced after the AKP's electoral victory is whether to draft a new constitution that will give Erdogan an executive presidency.

On Monday, Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu asked Turkey's political parties to agree on a new constitution. "I'm calling on all parties entering parliament to form a new civilian national constitution," he said in a victory speech in Ankara.

On Tuesday, the AKP spokesman Omer Celik echoed by calling on opposition political parties to work together to replace Turkey's military-era constitution.

"A new constitution is number one political pledge by the AKP. It is still valid today," he said.

However, the opposition is wary that the new constitution to be driven by the AKP is nothing but a blatant attempt to change Turkey's parliamentary system to a presidential one.

Gursel Tekin, general secretary of the main opposition Republican Peoples' Party (CHP) on Tuesday said that the party is open to the idea of drafting a brand new constitution.

"But if they want to add an executive presidency to that process, I tell them not to even come near to our door," he added.

Ayhan Bilgen, spokesperson for the pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP), also said the AKP is not sincere on the new constitution.

The AKP does not have enough seats to make constitutional amendments alone. And Erdogan has long been pushing for an executive presidency in Turkey, yet received a lackluster support from the public. Endi