The argument, in which Sezer reportedly threw a copy of Turkey's Constitution, was said to be unprecedented. On the surface, there should be little cause to draw links between a political feud and the economic future. But corruption investigations have focused on banking and energy, two sectors that can make or break Turkey's economy. The country's recovery from the November crisis may also depend on political stability to implement reforms. Fears of a government collapse always prompt worries that the military may intervene.
Turkey now faces challenges on many fronts at once.
In addition to the current political and economic fallout, it has agreed to embrace wide-ranging changes on the economy and human rights front to meet membership standards for the European Union. Old animosities with Armenia and tensions over Cyprus continue to roil Turkey's foreign affairs. But the countries of the Caspian region could soon find that Turkey's problems are also their own. The Turkic countries of the Caucasus and Central Asia have long felt the pull of linguistic and ethnic ties to Ankara. In one way or another, they have also pinned their hopes for energy exports on the Turkish market.