BY ZEYNEP GURCANLI It is possible to express the foreign policy pursued by President Erdogan since his prime ministership with a single term: a policy of balance. Erdogan used to use the rivalry, hostility, or tension between states as a means of balancing his foreign policy. Of course, many shifts were also made to establish...
Author: Zeynep Gurcanli (Zeynep Gurcanli)
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Whose victory is the grain corridor?
BY ZEYNEP GURCANLI The agreement on the delivery of Ukrainian and Russian grain to the world, signed under the leadership of Turkey, under the auspices of the UN, give the impression of a compromise where everyone wins. This is how it appears at first glance: with the agreements, the export barriers of Russia and Ukraine,...
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In Syria, who is a terrorist and who is not?
BY ZEYNEP GURCANLI At the Turkey-Russia-Iran trilateral summit held in Tehran, a decision was made to fight terrorism in Syria. In a statement published jointly by President Erdogan, Russian Leader Putin and the host, Iranian President Raisi, the three countries expressed their determination to fight terrorism in just a few paragraphs. So far, everyone’s ideas...
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The wheat issue: OPINION
BY ZEYNEP GURCANLI A bit of news from Egypt; “In Egypt, which is one of the world’s largest wheat importing countries, people are making bread from potatoes due to the wheat scarcity.” This is the concrete result of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in Egypt, which is thousands of kilometers away. When the two countries that...
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The Middle East air defense alliance
BY ZEYNEP GURCANLI Former US President Donald Trump’s visit to Saudi Arabia was a hot topic. Although the media coverage of the visit highlighted the sword dance by Trump with the Saudis and the poses struck by Arab leaders and the US President with placing their hands on a symbolic orb, the critical part of...
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Showing off in the Aegean, attacking from Cyprus
BY ZEYNEP GURCANLI The Aegean tension between Turkey and Greece, which has escalated recently, is wellknown. The “propaganda” tour by Greek Prime Minister Mitçotakis, which started in the US, continued with a meeting with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Brussels. The US and Germany, which have tried to remain neutral on the Aegean issues and...
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The NATO veto, Syria, and beyond: OPINION
BY ZEYNEP GURCANLI In connection with the Ukraine war, Sweden and Finland applied for membership in NATO. Turkey then stated that it would VETO the accessions. On the hidden agenda, there is the diplomatic arm wrestling between Turkey and the US. There are two critical dates for the conflict; the end of June and beginning...
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Could the NATO strategy backfire?
BY ZEYNEP GURCANLI The Ukraine war revealed the anti-Western sentiment in the Turkish public. Whether conservative or modern, from the political Islamist to the secular, the majority of Turkish society has tolerated Russia’s attempt to invade Ukraine simply because of its anti-Western attitude, so much so that the fact that Turkey is a full member...
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The issue of Syrian refugees; where and how will they go?
BY ZEYNEP GURCANLI Syrian refugees have become a domestic issue in Turkey in the 10 years since the Syrian civil war started. The AK Party government, which opened the doors of Turkey to Syrian citizens after the Syrian civil war began but hasn’t taken any action in terms of integration, jumped into action once the...
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Claw Lock, a multi-pronged operation: OPINION
BY ZEYNEP GURCANLI Turkey started the week with a new operation in Northern Iraq. It was announced that the aim of the operation, called “claw-lock”, carried out with coordinated air and land forces, is to destroy the PKK terrorist organization elements across the border. However, this is not the only goal, of course. It seems...