Turkey’s efforts to mend relations with rivals in the East Med and Gulf

The Greek Current

In 2021 we saw Turkey slowly work to reduce tensions with a number of its regional rivals, including Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. While Turkey seems eager to move from active confrontation toward greater stability, its rivals have not all embraced rapprochement with the same zeal as Ankara. The question now remains how far regional dynamics will shift given that many underlying fault lines remain. Expert Nicholas Danforth joins The Greek Current to talk about his latest policy brief for ELIAMEP, the Hellenic Foundation for European and Foreign Policy, which explores Turkey’s efforts over the past year to mend relations with its rivals in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Gulf, and share his thoughts on what we should expect moving forward.

Nicholas Danforth is a Non-Resident Senior Research Fellow at the Hellenic Foundation for European and Foreign Policy, ELIAMEP, and the author of the newly published “The Remaking of Republican Turkey: Memory and Modernity.”

Read Nicholas Danforth’s policy brief for ELIAMEP here: New Dynamics, Old Problems: Turkey’s Rapprochement Overtures in the Eastern Mediterranean

You can read the articles we discuss on our podcast here:

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