Claire Caniaux, winner of the first scientific prize of the Institut des hautes études de défense nationale (IHEDN)

The award-winning work, "Aiming for the moon. Les ambitions spatiales de la Turquie", directed by Alexandre Toumarkine, University Professor (CERMOM, Inalco), aimed to decipher the industrial, scientific, symbolic, domestic political or geopolitical motivations of a new entrant to the space field, Turkey, in aiming for the Moon.

The IHEDN jury decided to award this research work for its originality and the methodology used. The subject had never been explored before. In addition, Turkish-language sources were used, providing a detailed insight into Turkish motivations.

Certainly, space is a scientific subject, which can be dealt with by analyzing objective data, but in the Turkish case, quite a number of sub-issues emerged; symbolic, linguistic or even political legitimacy-building issues. So, although the subject was factual, it also touched on disciplines such as history, political science and even philosophy. Indeed, in this field of space, the mental representations that man makes of the territory in which he evolves are fascinating, and the spatial imaginary includes a strong political dimension.

An article summarizing this research work will be published in the Revue de la Défense Nationale of October 2023.

Biography

Claire Caniaux has been, since 2021, officer-traitant - Task Force simplification at the Army Inspectorate.

After studying comparative international law at Whittier Law School, she completed a Master 2 at SciencesPo in Toulouse, section "Carrières administratives - droit public", in 2008. She then entered the École Militaire Supérieure d'Administration et de Management in Montpellier. In 2010, she obtained a Master 2 in "Audit and internal control of public organizations" from the University of Montpellier 2. Her dissertation focused on the application of New Public Management principles to the Ministry of Defense.

From 2010 to 2014, she prepared the University Diploma in Turcology at the University of Aix - Marseille, which she successfully completed with a dissertation on the political role of women in the Ottoman Empire in the 16th century.

She then spent three years, in Izmir, Turkey, as Legal Advisor to the Commanding General within the LAND COMPONENT COMMAND (NATO), from 2017 to 2020.

On her return to Paris, she became a Trainee Officer at the École de Guerre (Paris) and enrolled at Inalco, in 2021, to prepare her Master 2 "Langues, littérature, civilisations étrangères et régionales" (Turkish), freshly awarded the IEHDN scientific prize.

Thesis summary

Turkey, a new entrant in the space field, launched, with a resounding presidential announcement in 2021, its national space program. Ten ambitious strategic objectives have been set, some of which, such as first contact with the Moon, are to be realized in the very near future, in 2023, for the centenary of the Turkish Republic. While the launch of this program by Turkey may come as a surprise, it is necessary to examine the real motivations behind it: are they mainly industrial and scientific, symbolic, or are they aimed at increasing the country's geopolitical weight?

This work analyzes Turkish motivations in the conduct of this program. While the success of certain objectives already seems compromised, the decision to launch the program is consistent with the Turkish president's international strategy and vision for his country's future. It goes hand in hand with Turkey's learning of the stakes involved in becoming a regional power destined to play a growing role in the Middle East. At a time when mankind is expanding its territory, so that it is now possible to speak of a "territorialization" of the space domain, Turkey has a role to play (and is determined to do so) in securing its weight in the concert of nations over the coming decades, in view of the new space era that is opening up.


L'IHEDN
L'Institut des hautes études de défense nationale (IHEDN) is a public training and information establishment under the supervision of the Prime Minister, whose mission is to promote a defense culture, help strengthen national cohesion, and contribute to the development of strategic thinking on defense and security issues.

The IHEDN scientific awards are designed to highlight research on defense, security, international relations, foreign policy, armaments and defense economics.

They also serve to foster links between IHEDN and the academic world.

Created in 1998, each year they reward researchers in Master II research and doctoral programs, whose work, defended during the year, advances knowledge in the humanities and social sciences.