Moscow or Washington: Which is now closer to Ankara?
It is still unclear which superpower – Russia or the U.S. – has better ties with Turkey at the moment, as Ankara is open to working with anyone who respects its national security concerns
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US administration drives Turkey closer to Russia, EU
The U.S. administration's anti-Turkey actions have led Ankara to simultaneously end its disagreements with EU countries and deepen its strategic partnership with Moscow
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Although the recent protests in Armenia may seem to be sparked by the announcement of a 20 percent price hike in public electricity, the main reason behind them is the economic and political dependence on Russia and the crisis in Ukraine.
It was a disappointing moment for Turks to learn that the foreign affairs committee of the US House of Representatives has narrowly voted to approve a resolution describing the massacre of more than a million Armenians by the Ottoman Empire during the first world war as genocide. Turkey recalled its newly appointed ambassador to Washington, Namık Tan, for consultation a few minutes after the vote. It is no secret that there is an "Armenian question" in Turkish-American relations, which has resulted in a seasonal oscillation in bilateral relations around this time of year for many years.
President Obama's trip to Turkey April 6-7 is undoubtedly significant. The visit follows Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's trip abroad last month, which included two separate bilateral stops, Israel and Turkey.
BBC covered the story as a "landmark visit to Armenia." CNN called it "football diplomacy." French President Nicolas Sarkozy applauded the visit as "courageous and historic."
Saakashvili Pulled the Trigger: Turkey between Russia and Georgia
Turkey has been involved, historically and demographically, with many of the regions of “frozen conflict” in post-Soviet space. At this point, one might consider the position of Turkey as being at the epicenter of Euro-Atlantic and Russian extremes concerning the frozen conflicts. Georgia, since 1991, has been considered a valuable “strategic partner” by Turkey for several reasons. Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdoğan’s Caucasus Pact idea is a good opportunity to create an inclusive (Russia+Turkey+Georgia+Armenia+Azerbaijan) new foreign policy approach at this stage. This approach should be merged with the representation of all the frozen or unfrozen conflict areas, peoples, ethnic groups and regions included under the roof of such an alliance.
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