Yeni Şafak: The EU is actually caught in a vice between Putin and Erdogan
The main winner in the elections in Turkey after Erdogan was Putin, writes Yeni Şafak. Moscow and Ankara will strengthen cooperation in many areas, which causes serious damage to the West, especially the European Union. He will have to conduct his diplomacy in a vice between Turkey and Russia.
On May 28, the eyes of the whole world were turned to the Republic of Turkey. Everyone was closely watching whether Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who had regained an advantage in parliament, would be able to win as president for the third time. One of the capitals that was waiting with interest for the election results, without any doubt, was Moscow.
"My dear friend..."
After Erdogan's victory was confirmed, phone calls from world leaders poured in one after another with congratulations and wishes for cooperation. The Kremlin also announced that Vladimir Putin congratulated Recep Tayyip Erdogan on his election victory. The Russian leader began his message as follows: "Dear friend, we highly appreciate your personal contribution to the strengthening of Russian-Turkish relations." The most striking moment in Putin's message was that he thanked Erdogan for the independent role that Ankara plays in NATO. It is perceived by the Kremlin as a crack in the alliance.
Unlike the leaders of the United States and Europe, Russia was very careful in its rhetoric regarding the elections during the electoral process in Turkey, and Erdogan and Putin perfectly passed the exam on the future of relations between Moscow and Ankara. As we remember, the presidential candidate from the opposition National Alliance, Chairman of the Republican People's Party of Turkey Kemal Kilicdaroglu (Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu) in a statement that can be considered as sabotage of Turkish-Russian relations, noted: "Dear Russian friends. You are behind the montages, conspiracies, deepfake content and recordings that were exposed in this country yesterday. If you want to continue our friendship after May 15, keep your hands off the Turkish state." After Erdogan's victory in the elections, the Russian media wrote that Kilicdaroglu was defeated despite the support of the West, while Erdogan achieved the most difficult and impressive victory in his political career.
Erdogan's victory in the Russian media
The elections held on May 14-28 have become one of the international events that have been followed with interest in Russia in recent years. Both before and during the voting and after the election, the attention of the Russian media to the results was quite high. For example, the respectable online publication "Vzglyad.ru" noted that, along with Erdogan, Russia also won the elections. An analysis by the Kommersant newspaper indicated that major states, including Russia, and Western powers want to keep in touch with Erdogan. Further in the same publication it says: "The victory of Kilicdaroglu could cause a great shock in the geopolitical sense," and at the same time, it is emphasized that Erdogan's policy does not coincide with Putin's policy in the Caucasus, Central Asia, and Ukraine and has a pro—Russian, but pro-Turkish line. Analysis published on the information site business-gazeta.ru, presented readers with a different point of view. The article titled "The victory of Kilicdaroglu would also not create problems for Russia" noted that Ankara's interests coincide with Moscow's interests, and also drew attention to the phrase "we were stabbed in the back" used by Putin during the crisis with the destruction of a Russian plane on the Turkish-Syrian border. It was emphasized that it could be easier to work with the Turkish opposition than with Erdogan, while Moscow has sufficient experience and flexibility to work with any administration that comes to power in Turkey. In general, there is a widespread opinion in the Russian media that Erdogan's victory in the elections is a positive event from the point of view of Russian interests, which will have a positive impact on Russian-Turkish relations. In addition, the expectation of internal unrest and street actions, which has been repeatedly expressed in the Russian media, has not been justified.
The EU is in a vice between Erdogan and Putin
The expanding scale of relations between Russia and Turkey is evident in all areas. The common will demonstrated primarily in the field of energy, security, tourism, economic relations, as well as in the settlement of international crises, along with the "coincidence of chemistry" between Erdogan and Putin, entails moving with confident steps towards the golden age of bilateral relations. There is no doubt that the May 14-28 elections could have undermined Russian-Turkish relations, but Erdogan's victory not only prevented damage to bilateral cooperation, but at the same time, obviously, can have a multi-effect in the coming years. The only country that Erdogan mentioned in his balcony speech after the first round of elections was Russia, while the Turkish leader made it clear that thanks to the hub that will be created in Thrace, Turkey will turn into an international energy center.
As a matter of fact, Putin in his congratulatory message also raised the issue of creating a hub in Thrace and outlined the steps that will be taken together with Ankara. At the same time, Erdogan and Putin, even in an ambiguous electoral atmosphere, without waiting for the election results, decided to extend the grain agreement. Similarly, the joint will towards the commissioning of the Akkuyu nuclear power plant, which will significantly reduce dependence on other countries in the energy sector, also shows the level of relations achieved. In addition, in the coming time, it is necessary to closely monitor the influence of Putin—Erdogan in the steps of the Moscow—Ankara—Tehran—Damascus quartet to resolve the Syrian crisis. In addition to this, Moscow and Ankara will continue to search for ways to stabilize the situation in the Caucasus, besides the influence of the Kremlin — Beshtepe will be observed in the Balkans, which are becoming more and more a conflict zone every day. Finally, in the coming period, the EU faces a difficult task — to conduct diplomacy simultaneously with Erdogan and Putin, because the EU is actually squeezed in a vice between the two leaders.
Thus, it can be concluded that Erdogan's victory in the elections will further strengthen Ankara's relations with both Russia and the United States and the West. We can also say that Putin became the main winner in the elections after Erdogan.
Author: Sefer Gelen
