PNN – In the days when many eyes are focused on the irreconcilable confrontation between the Zionist regime and the axis of resistance, the approach of actors like Turkey towards these developments has not been overlooked by analysts and media.
In recent days, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan described the regime as a “Zionist terrorist organization” and “monster responsible for the blood of tens of thousands of Palestinian children, women and civilians” in one of his strongest stances against Israel’s bellicosity.
Criticizing Western countries for continuing to provide weapons to the Israeli regime, Erdoğan clarified that Benjamin Netanyahu, the prime minister of the Zionist regime, and his criminal network have become delusional and embarked on a very dangerous adventure. Therefore, considering the prevailing atmosphere in our region, we believe that we should talk more and we need a compromise.
Although the anti-Zionist stance of Turkey, which was known as a supporter of Hamas for many years, has intensified, there have been many debates and opinions about this support, including in recent days the issue of supplying Israel with steel, many discussions and opinions in social networks and among users in the region.
In order to understand Turkey’s regional goals and interests, which direct Ankara’s approaches to developments in West Asia, there is a need to more closely examine these goals and interests and the components of Turkey’s foreign policy in general.
“Türkiye’s Foreign Policy in the Peripheral Regions” written by “Siamak Kakai” is the title of a book that examines these components. In the introduction of this work, it is stated: The Republic of Türkiye was formed in 1923 and after the so-called wars of independence in parts of the remnants of the Ottoman Empire. Between the first and second world wars, Türkiye was in the process of organizing a new political and social order and establishing new cultural traditions and concepts. Further, the principles and foundations of Türkiye’s foreign policy have been influenced by several factors that play a role in determining the directions.
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Dirty war; Widespread destruction in Gaza and Lebanon to cover up the failure.
Türkiye and surrounding areas
In this book, the author used the concept of “peripheral areas” and wrote: The peripheral region includes neighboring countries and nearby regions, where any changes and transformations from the political, social, security and economic aspects affect the internal environment of the target country. The surrounding environment of countries always faces numerous and common challenges and problems. The threats in the peripheral region are caused by border insecurities, instabilities and conflicts and long wars, which affect the behavior of decision makers and adopt appropriate positions and strategies in order to reduce its effects in the domestic arena or advance new regional goals.
Türkiye, with an area of 783 thousand square kilometers and a population of more than 85 million people, is one of the most important and strategic countries in the world. The reason for Türkiye’s superior strategic position is its privileged geographical location and its geopolitical position. Turkey’s geopolitical importance is due to its location in the Anatolian civilization and its neighborhood with sensitive and tense areas such as West Asia, the Caucasus, and its proximity to the Black Sea, the Aegean Sea, and the Eastern Mediterranean, as well as having the important international waterways of the Bosphorus and Dardanelles. Türkiye is also located in the region close to the Balkans, Russia and the Persian Gulf. This position, along with the process of economic growth and development of urbanization and having military capabilities, has given Turkey the identity of a “regional power”.
Türkiye’s foreign policy in important areas
In the fourth chapter, the book is organized in two parts due to the extent of the discussed areas around Türkiye. Türkiye’s foreign policy and relations with most of its neighbors have always been subject to a form of security mystery. Syria and Iraq in West Asia, Armenia in the Caucasus and Greece in Europe have had a tense history with Türkiye.
In the second part of the chapter, the effective factors in the aggressiveness of Türkiye’s policy in the Eastern Mediterranean are discussed; Why Türkiye adopts a different approach towards militarism in the surrounding environment and near neighbors is investigated. At the same time, it is an important issue to examine the consequences and prospects of the continuation of Türkiye’s aggressive policy and the challenges it faces on the domestic environment and the regional role of this country.
Ankara’s regional policy from the Mediterranean to the Persian Gulf
Relations between Türkiye and the Persian Gulf countries expanded after the Justice and Development Party came to power. These relations have fluctuated politically and in twenty years, it has experienced three different situations from mutual trust to tension and distance and then back to the normalization of relations with countries like Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
The background of Türkiye’s historical, cultural and religious relations and commonalities with the countries of the Persian Gulf has provided suitable platforms for cooperation. Turning Turkey’s foreign policy from continuing tensions with Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and Egypt to rebuilding relations with these countries means prioritizing relations and expanding economic cooperation with this region.
In the sixth chapter, referring to the extent of Türkiye’s Mediterranean peripheral region, the author stated that Türkiye plays the main role of creating tension in this region. The rise of the challenge between Turkey and Cyprus and the new demands about the continental shelf, as well as Turkey’s military presence in Libya and the long-standing conflict with Greece over the Aegean islands, have influenced the nature of the security of the Eastern Mediterranean.
The emergence of ISIS as a non-state actor and its will to govern was debated and scrutinized. This is considered to be the same anomaly that casts a shadow on the concept of geopolitics and in those years forced actors such as Turkey to confront the rise of non-governmental groups in their border areas to form autonomous Kurdish cantons in northern Syria. On the other hand, Turkey, in an inverted role and by supporting disruptive non-governmental groups in Syria, made this country face another form of geopolitical anomaly and change that threatened the whole of Syria.
Ankara’s approaches towards Tel Aviv
Türkiye’s relations with Israel, as mentioned, have been the subject of various discussions and investigations. According to “Ardeshir Senai” in an article entitled “Analytical framework for examining relations between Turkey and Israel after the Justice and Development Party came to power”, Turkey is the first Muslim country in the Middle East that recognized Israel and established diplomatic relations in 1949. . Relations between Türkiye and Israel are always mentioned as a strategic relationship. The relationship between the two is a deep relationship that continued despite the political changes in Türkiye and the establishment of the Justice and Development Party.
According to this expert on regional issues, Turkey’s Justice and Development Party, which came to power in the 2002 parliamentary elections, is actually a new generation of Islamists led by Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who both established closer relations with Israel and made Turkey’s presence in the European Union more tolerant. Although the president and prime minister of Türkiye were Islamist personalities, the country’s friendly relations with Israel became increasingly stronger and the cooperation between the two countries expanded.