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The Turkey/Cyprus Conflict and its Implications for Russia

  • Received : 2020.04.21
  • Accepted : 2021.05.29
  • Published : 2021.06.15
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Abstract

Relations between Ankara and Washington, which have hardly been harmonious, recently became extremely tense, especially when Turkey decided to deal with Kurdish enclaves nearby its border. Russia naturally took advantage of the tension by providing Turkey with advanced S-400 missiles and by trying to play a peacemaking role in contested regions within Syria. Ankara's dealings with Moscow alienated it from NATO and the USA, and complicated relations with Russia and its allies in Syria, where Turkey's interests collided with those of Tehran and Moscow. While these aspects of the Ankara/Moscow relationship are well known, this article explores how the discovery of natural gas in the Mediterranean has increased Ankara's importance to Moscow, as a means of sowing dissension within NATO and helping Moscow hinder the emergence of alternative gas suppliers to Europe.

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References

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