Erdoğan did not hide his main demand when he buried the case of Jamal Khashoggi, the Washington Post columnist who was killed on October 2, 2018 by Saudi agents in his country’s consulate in Istanbul. “We agreed with Saudi Arabia to reactivate a great economic potential through organisations that will bring our investors together,” Erdoğan declared recently during his first trip to Riyadh since 2017, adding, “my visit will herald a new era in the ties between our two countries.” READ MORE
As the Ukraine war appears to extend into a longer military conflict and stalemate, Turkey’s balancing act between Washington and Moscow faces more challenges. READ MORE
The Turkish government counts on the fact that warming relations with Israel may offer lobbying power in Washington, hence, a step forward in courting the Biden Administration. Israel’s price tag for warming relations, however, may demand another shift in Turkey’s foreign policy: changing course in Ankara-Tehran relations. READ MORE
From a long-term strategic perspective, Turkey’s growing isolation in the Mediterranean set off alarm bells across the Turkish political spectrum. Thus, with de-escalating regional conflicts, Turkey seeks to heal self-wounds. READ MORE
Listen our panel with experts Hussein Ibish (The Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington), Andreas Krieg (King’s College London), and Nervana Mahmoud. The recording is available here
A frustrated Erdogan government seeks favors from both Washington and Moscow, and escalation of violence is a means to gain certain prizes from either side. READ MORE
Behind Turkey’s relentless bid is the perception of Afghanistan as a potential bargaining chip in Ankara’s relationship with the Biden Administration, which is grappling with an unexpected domestic public relations debacle. READ MORE
The panel discussion was one of the most watched videos by American University’s School of International Service channel. The recording is available here.
At The House of Wisdom, we had an engaging discussion with Noah Feldman on his book,The Arab Winter: A Tragedy. The book challenges the conventional wisdom and asks novel philosophical questions about most noble–and painfully tragic– series of events in which, for the first time in recent Middle Eastern history, Arabic-speaking peoples took free, collective action for their self-determination. Watch the podcast on YouTube
Mustafa Gurbuz 