Trump's decision to stop "this nonsense" caught the Pentagon and the U.S. State Department by surprise.

“Reclaiming the Region: Russia, the West and the Middle East,” is the last issue for 2017, which has been a very successful year for Insight Turkey. As with the previous issues, we trust that our readers will find this issue informative and constructive!

Turkey, Russia and Iran's in detail discussions to find a solution to the Syrian civil war in Sochi may discomfort those whose policies only aim to deepen the crisis

Once again Daesh is being used as a stick to threaten the Turkish government

U.S. and Western Europe are joined at the top of the global pyramid by aspiring emerging powers led by China and India seeking to redefine existing power balances and institutional settings.

There are two countries that enjoy the deepening chaos of the Middle East. One is Russia, which has increased its influence by filling the gaps left by the U.S. after 2015. It has achieved regional power that affects the balances with a relatively limited military presence.

We need to see that a big, malevolent game is being played. Of course, regional countries' faulty strategies, steps to save the day and especially elites' efforts to gain ground in domestic politics catalyze foreign powers' manipulations and interventions. However, it is indisputable that the region is currently facing a new policy of disintegration plotted by foreign powers.

In retrospect, this neo-medieval order did not emerge by happenstance or as a result of sporadic developments, but as a result of a deliberate, flexible and long-term regional transformation strategy conducted by the U.S. and its interlocutors.

The crown prince's grip on power, which has received the blessing of the United States, Israel and the Gulf, has been accompanied by powerful rhetoric of reform, a new vision, development and fighting corruption.

Making significant progress in the fight against Daesh, Ankara must now watch out for the terrorist group's next-generation attacks such as vehicles plowing through crowds and using sleeper cells

With some minor changes in its policies on Gülen and the PYD, Washington can easily fix its ties with Ankara

The West does not seem to be bothered much about the rising tide of micro-nationalism in the Middle East, which is categorically perceived as an endemic conflict zone

Turkey's expectations from Germany are very clear: To support Turkey in its fight against terrorism, and to end its support to the terror groups fighting against Turkey. Let us leave aside the Revolutionary People's Liberation Party-Front (DHKP-C) and even the Gülenist Terror Group (FETÖ) and speak only of the PKK.

Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi is considering either incorporating the KRG peshmerga into the Iraqi military or keeping it as a minor local force. It is very obvious to what extent this recession troubles the KRG, which has tried to realize self-governance since 1991. It is safe to say that the situation has traumatized the collective memory of Kurdish nationalists.

In particular, the successive U.S. administrations made it clear that their quest to promote "moderate Islam" was ingenuine at four points:

Despite the push to present Meral Akşener, the chairwoman of the newly established İYİ Party, as an alternative candidate against President Erdoğan in the run up to the 2019 presidential elections, Professor Duran thinks this will not translate into results, as a true candidate for the opposition parties is yet to be identified

The U.S. identified a new priority: The containment of Iran. Having secured the support of Israel and several Gulf countries, the U.S. president recently unveiled a new, strongly-worded Iran strategy. And he refused to certify the Iran nuclear deal to compel Congress to take action.