Relations between Russia and Turkey are at a fairly high level today
Cooperation in such sensitive issues is sometimes not possible even between the participants within the same military-political bloc. Speaking about joint problem solving, it is worth noting the individual degree of sensitivity in relation to these problems on each of the parties. Thus, some regions are assessed by two countries, based on their importance in relation to their own state interests. This is often directly related to national security issues. From this point of view, the North of Syria for Ankara is equivalent in importance to the South-East of Ukraine for Moscow. Finding common ground in high-risk areas becomes the main task of the parties, and its result is a determining factor in stability and security in the future. In this piggy bank it is worth adding Karabakh, Libya, and soon, possibly, Afghanistan and Cyprus.
In fact, the list can be endless. Recently, Turkey’s participation in the international arena has grown quite strongly, and other players also notice this. Someone is extremely worried, someone plays into the hands, but all agree on one thing – Turkey must now be reckoned with. While the United States and the European Union are tweaking the carrot and stick against Turkey, Russia recognizes Turkey as a regional power. In this context, Russian-Turkish relations are increasingly being tested for strength, and, surprisingly for many, they withstand them.
The effectiveness of such cooperation lies in the approaches, primarily Russian ones. Possessing more powerful military-technical resources and influence on the international arena, Moscow, most likely, has outlined its red lines for Ankara, going beyond which is associated with significant risks for the latter, and the Turkish leader Recep Erdogan, apparently, has learned this well, after the well-known events of 2016. At the same time, at the present stage, Moscow is building partner relations with Turkey, calling it a responsible and reliable party and taking into account its interests, even in those cases when they are in the zone of traditionally Russian influence. Perhaps that is why the Turks are trying to find new ground for solving other pressing issues with the assistance of Moscow.
The recently expressed idea of a professor at Istanbul University Hasan Unal about a possible agreement between Turkey and Russia on Crimea, which implies Russia’s recognition of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, undoubtedly reflects Ankara’s desire for a new interaction with Moscow, with benefits for both sides.
After resolving the Karabakh issue, bypassing the views of Western countries, which subsequently had no choice but to recognize the outcome of the conflict settlement, Turkey is probably interested in using the proven formula in other points where it does not and cannot have a consensus with the US or the EU. However, this time, the essence of the problem, as well as its perception by the parties, is fundamentally different. Crimea, according to Russia, is an integral part of the Russian state, which in the course of the historical process unjustly, and most importantly unlawfully, passed under the jurisdiction of Ukraine, and after the expression of the will of the population of the peninsula, returned to Russia. And for this, in the opinion of the Russian side, no recognition from the international community is required. Turkey cannot but understand this, especially after the recent publication of an article by Russian President Vladimir Putin on relations with Ukraine. In this case, Turkey has groped the wrong point of contact.
An equivalent step on the part of Ankara would be the recognition of South Ossetia or Abkhazia, which, of course, Turkey cannot agree to, risking strategic relations with Georgia.
Thus, both states build their line of conduct in accordance with their own national interests, which often even overlap, but they do not always look at the same things in the same way. There are differences of views on many issues, but, as practice shows, they are being resolved, there is not just a dialogue between the countries, but close interaction in many relevant government departments, including coordination of actions.
Today, the main stumbling block in Russian-Turkish relations is the increased cooperation between Turkey and Ukraine in the military-technical sphere. Kiev needs Turkish drones that have proven themselves in the Second Karabakh War, which, as it turned out, greatly annoys Moscow, which strongly advised not to “feed the militaristic sentiments” of Ukraine.
Ankara, in turn, left without Canadian engines for its unmanned aerial vehicles, due to sanctions from the United States, is very interested in Ukrainian ones, and the corresponding contracts have already been concluded, we are even talking about the joint production of UAVs.
Along with this, Turkey believes that the concerns of the Russian side are unfounded, because Ankara is selling military equipment to everyone who wants to buy it. It is worth noting that Moscow also often sold its weapons openly to warring parties, for example, in the same Karabakh conflict. Therefore, from a financial point of view, Russia cannot have a lack of understanding of the Turkish arms export policy, and without Turkey’s rash actions on the “Ukrainian field”, serious complications in Russian-Turkish relations are not expected at the present stage.
Mamed Mustafayev, specially for News Front