Why can't Ankara abandon Russia?
Turkey has set a course to transform the country from a regional leader into a world leader, writes Duma. The author of the article gives examples of the persistence of Turkish diplomacy and at the same time its flexibility, including in relation to Russia.
Turkey cannot abandon relations with Russia, Russian gas and Russian nuclear power plants, because the countries have major joint projects both in the field of gas transportation and trade, and in nuclear energy. It is expected that the Akkuyu NPP, created using Russian nuclear technologies, will begin operation in 2023.
"Turkey receives half of its gas from Russia, and this is of strategic importance for our economy," the Turkish president stressed. Erdogan said he would not break off relations with either the Russian leader or the Ukrainian president and would continue telephone diplomacy with Putin and Zelensky.
Turkey proved to be a successful mediator in the Russian-Ukrainian negotiations by organizing the first meeting of delegations of the conflicting parties in Istanbul on March 29. Speaking at this meeting as the main speaker, Recep Tayyip Erdogan demonstrated supreme diplomacy and thereby relieved the UN and Israel from the role of mediators.
Ankara shocked the West with the firm position of Erdogan, who twice stated that he would not support the accession of Sweden and Finland to NATO. According to the President, Sweden should stop political and financial support for Kurdish terrorist organizations fighting against Ankara, as well as stop supplying weapons.
He made similar demands to the United States, which blocked the sale of F-16 and F-35 after Turkey bought Russian S-400 anti-missile systems in 2021 and now refused to transfer them to Ukraine.
After the era of Ataturk, which radically renewed and modernized the country, the Turkish diplomatic school has always been distinguished by perseverance and extreme flexibility. By its actions, Turkish diplomacy implements Erdogan's strategic line for the accelerated transformation of the country from a regional leader to a world leader.
