Turkey and the West: Drifting Further Apart
by Burak Bekdil • August 6, 2021 at 5:00 am
In theory, Turkey is a NATO ally. In theory, also, Turkey is in negotiations with the European Union for full membership. In reality, both are illusions.
In April, the European Council on Foreign Relations surveyed more than 17,000 people in 12 European countries. The survey found that: "Turkey is the only country that more Europeans see as an adversary than a necessary partner.... Europeans understand there are aspects of their relations with Russia, China, and Turkey that make these countries rivals or even adversaries."
The feeling of drifting apart between the Turks and Westerners is mutual and growing.... an inevitable result of Turkey's top-to-bottom Islamization over the past two decades.
In theory, Turkey is a NATO ally. In theory, also, Turkey is in negotiations with the European Union for full membership. In reality, both are illusions.
In September 2010, Turkish and Chinese aircraft conducted joint exercises in Turkish airspace. In 2011, the Turkish government announced plans to build a ballistic missile with a range of 2,500 kilometers. In 2012, Turkey joined the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) as a dialogue partner. (Other dialogue partners were Belarus and Sri Lanka; observers were Afghanistan, India, Pakistan, Iran, and Mongolia.) Since then, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has said numerous times that Ankara will abandon its quest to join the EU if it is offered full membership in the SCO.
