Turkey's New Geopolitics

While Turkey remains tied to the West through its membership in NATO, the Council of Europe and the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, under the leadership of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his energetic foreign minister Ahmet Davutoglu, the country has launched a number of new foreign-policy initiatives that have increased its international stature and regional influence. Ankara's new foreign-policy activism has been particularly visible in the Middle East, where Turkey has sought to strengthen ties with its Muslim neighbours, especially Iran and Syria. Relations with Russia have improved as well, especially in the economic field, and Ankara has recently sought to mend fences with Armenia, another long-time adversary. This does not mean, however, that Turkey is turning its back on the West or that ‘Econo-Islamism’ (a blend of business and religious-political interests) has taken charge in Ankara. Turkey still wants, and needs, strong ties with the United States. But in future Turkey is likely to continue to broaden and diversify its foreign policy and be more hesitant to automatically follow Washington's lead Managing the US–Turkish relationship will require patience and skilful diplomacy on both sides, more so now than ever before.