Turkey seeks to undo foreign policy deadlocks

Turkey is redefining its traditional alliances with the European Union (EU) and NATO and trying to smooth its ruptured relations with Israel and others, in efforts to extricate itself from a growing isolation in the international arena, said analysts.

The signs first emerged in November 2015, when Ankara negotiated a three-billion-euro aid deal for Syrian refugees on its soil with the EU, which in return re-energized Turkey's long-stalled accession talks with the bloc.

Another breakthrough was observed in Turkey's efforts to normalize ties with Israel, which nosedived after Israeli soldiers raided a flotilla attempting to break Israel's blockade on the Gaza Strip and killed 10 Turkish citizens in 2010.

Ankara, which closed its embassy in Israel in 2012, is considering appointing a new ambassador as Israel has taken a number of positive steps regarding the issues of lifting the blockade on Gaza and paying compensation to the families of those killed in the raid, Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said.

As part of Turkey's moves to tilt back toward its Western allies, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan opted to give up Ankara's bid for China's long-range missile defense system and announced his decision while hosting the G20 leaders' summit in November.

"This was an clear signal sent to NATO and its Western allies showing that Ankara wouldn't be alienated from the transatlantic block during 2016," Ahmet Han, an executive board member of the Center for Economics and Foreign Policy Studies, told Xinhua.

Disputes over Syria, Cyprus, democracy and human rights, among others, have roiled and alienated Turkey's relations with its Western allies over the years, stalling Ankara's bid to be part of the EU, its top foreign policy goal.

Meanwhile, Turkey's policy of "zero-problems with neighbors" has also crumbled, as many have argued, eroding its image of a "role model" in the region.

Turkey is expected to normalize its relationship with Egypt in 2016 as well, as Ankara confirmed that it had invited Cairo to the 13th summit of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation slated for April 10-15 in Istanbul.

Turkey strongly criticized a coup led by then military chief Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi in 2013 ousting the popularly-elected President Mohamed Morsi. Egypt responded by expelling Turkey's ambassador.

Ankara's isolation reached its climax when it shot down a Russian fighter jet in November over an alleged airspace violation, putting NATO at odds with Russia in one of the most serious crises between the two since the end of World War II.

"It seemed Turkish policymakers finally understood that isolation can no longer be sustained in the face of the country's poor security atmosphere, high energy demand and an emerging economic crisis," said Merve Ozdemirkiran, an analyst from Marmara University.

He told Xinhua that changes being made in Ankara's foreign policy were necessary for the country to survive in "such a chaotic period" ensuing from a global terror threat.

"Now Turkey is increasingly rediscovering and redefining its traditional alliances to undo foreign policy deadlocks," noted Han. "This might be called a reset of Turkish foreign policy."

Despite the ongoing changes, it would be wrong to expect Turkey to revamp its foreign policy in its entirety, said Ozdemirkiran.

"For example, there is no real indication that the EU-Turkey ties are on the verge of a new era," she explained, noting that Ankara is still far behind in complying with the Copenhagen criteria for EU membership.

"I'm not expecting Turkey to strongly dedicate and commit itself to fulfill its obligations to complete the EU accession talks in the short run," she added.

In her view, Turkey is seeking better relations with Israel as a result of worsening ties with Russia, a development that has started to jeopardize the flow of natural gas to Turkey.

Turkey had lost a lot of leverage in Syria long before the Russian crisis erupted, by insisting on the ouster of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad as a prerequisite for any political transition in his country, and by declaring the Euphrates River as a new redline for the Kurds, analysts said.

In Han's view, however, getting out of the isolation in Syria would not be easy in the short run.

Turkey has struggled to balance its participation in the U.S.-led coalition against the Islamic State in Syria with its own concerns about the Syrian Kurds, who have gained much territories by taking advantage of the chaos.

Turkish security forces are fighting against the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) militants, who are seeking autonomy in the country's southeast.

"Having all the troubles with its own Kurds, Turkey will even be marginalized in the upcoming Syrian peace process," Han said, referring to a new roadmap adopted by the UN Security Council.

Turkey has lately threatened to boycott the Syrian peace talks in Geneva, which kicked off on Friday, if the Syrian Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD) was invited. Turkey sees the PYD as a terrorist group with links to the PKK.

Under the agreement reached by the world powers in December, the Syrian peace talks will include a cease-fire, preparations for a draft constitution and elections within 18 months.

"Whatever the process may be, it would not be categorically a process involving Turkey," Han remarked.

Suleyman Sensoy, head of the Turkish Asian Center for Strategic Studies, told Xinhua that it would be for the benefit of Ankara to soften its attitude toward the al-Assad regime in 2016, especially after the adoption of the new road map.

"Turkey shouldn't reject a well-defined political transitional period with al-Assad," he said.

Analysts also advised Turkey not to ignore its ties with Asian countries and China in particular.

They attached special importance to China's "Belt and Road" initiative, which is also known as the Silk Road Economic Belt and 21st-Century Maritime Silk Road initiative aiming at promoting connectivity and cooperation among countries involved.

Yunus Soner, head of the International Relations Department of Turkey's Patriotic Party, defined the initiative as an "immense" opportunity for Turkey to develop not only its economic relations with the countries alongside the Silk Road but also political and cultural ties.

"Actually, everyone in Turkey already knows and feels that the 'Age of Asia' has begun," he told Xinhua.

Source: XINHUA