Russia is not an alternative to Turkey’s cooperation with the European Union; neither Turkey is a substitute for Russia working harder to resolve its problems with the United States and Europe
Relations between Russia and Turkey have always been and will always be a controversial subject. For both countries, this is a very special relationship; ...
... to stop the influx of refugees as soon as possible. In this context, the EU member nations, first of all Germany, perceived Turkey as both Europe's rescuer and its potential undoer.
Fully aware that Europe was dependent on its position and actions, Turkey grew more vocal in demanding visa-free travel for its citizens and intensification of talks on the country’s accession to the European Union.
Since late 2004, Ankara has enjoyed EU candidate member status. To join the EU, each candidate state needs to meet the requirements of the so-called acquis, which consists of 35 chapters. One of the demands Ankara made in the context of ...
... caused by accusations of mutual election interference. These include security concerns and disputes revolving around NATO and European Union enlargement, Russian actions in Crimea and eastern Ukraine, as well as the nature of the conventional and nuclear ... ... However, there has been a significant lack of coordination that has been further antagonizing relations.
First, NATO-member Turkey
shot down
a Russian aircraft in November 2015 — an action that tested the NATO-Russia relationship, even if Turkey and ...
... containment. Here the signing of the Turkish Stream project with Ankara is a solution. Russia gains new leverage vis-à-vis the European Union by officially incorporating the Turkish Stream into the picture. In that sense, Russia will be able to use Turkish ... ... of established bilateral energy relations, now there is a more complex and dynamic energy triangle between the EU, Russia and Turkey.
Turkish Stream might turn out to be a good opportunity for Turkey since the project could act as a catalyst of change ...
On October 7-9, 2016 the British
Centre for European Reform
and the Turkish
Centre for Economic and Foreign Policy Studies
(EDAM) held in Turkey their annual
Bodrum Roundtable
.
For the twelfth time the event brought together some fifty European and Turkish politicians, parliamentarians, government officials, experts and journalists.
The main areas of discussion included the relationship ...
... failure of which the authorities could have used to punish unwanted military commanders and carry out a massive purge of government officials.
Talks about bringing back the death penalty and strengthening political power will exacerbate relations between Turkey and the European Union, which are not in their best shape as it is, and that will push the country towards political and economic rapprochement with Russia. At the same time, Berezovets does not see any prospects for a long-term Russia–Turkey alliance. ...
... following Russia’s cancellation of South Stream which became a casualty of Russia-Ukrainian conflict and faced high opposition from the EU with regard to its anti-monopoly laws. The original plan for landfall in the EU (Bulgaria) will now occur in Turkey, while the distribution hub for Europe will be located at the border of Turkey and Greece. Being a strategically important transit point for Russian gas going to Europe and bypassing Ukraine, Turkey tries to increase its bargaining power and engages ...
... refugees from Turkey (by the end of 2014, there were
1.6
million Syrians in Turkey, according to official Turkish estimates) that triggered the sharp crisis of the Schengen zone and of the European Union’s immigration policy.
In negotiating with Turkey, the European Union proceeds in accordance with earlier and apparently rational schemes. The idea of cooperation with countries that export/transit migrants was formulated in the European Pact on Immigration and Asylum in 2008 and was being successfully implemented....
... part of the overall package of 300 billion euros
to cover the 1.5 to 1.7 billion euros needed to build the 740-km section of the pipeline on Hungarian territory.
Hungary’s president Janos Ader stated during his visit to Turkey in March 2015 that Turkey needed to “get a move on” with preparing its plan for financing the Turkish Stream, since “
there are also alternative proposals on the European Union’s table
”. In view of the fact that
Gazprom intends to cease supplying gas via Ukraine in 2019
, when its contract with Naftogaz of Ukraine expires, the energy future of the Balkan peninsular countries and South-East Europe ...
... technical regulations, Turkey has now reached the stage where its trade relations with the European Union are generally very efficient in terms of improving its balance and reducing its trade deficit. Over the past few years, the import-to-export ratio in Turkey in terms of its trade with the European Union has hovered around 70 per cent (80 per cent at the end of the 2000s), against 50 per cent during the early years of the Union
[1]
.
Natalia Ulchenko
Talk of the creation of a free trade zone between Turkey and the Russian Federation is ...