US-Turkey relations

The West cannot abandon Turkey, and Greece does not want the West to abandon Turkey, even with a president like Erdogan – the dangerous revisionist that supposedly no one wants to talk to.

Obviously, Erdogan is largely motivated by an expansionist vision, yet he is receiving from abroad ever sterner signals that differences with Greece must be peacefully resolved.

For years, Ali Babacan was the moderate, European-oriented face of Turkey, serving as Ankara’s chief negotiator in the country’s EU accession talks.

'President Biden reaffirmed our defense partnership and Turkey’s importance as a NATO Ally, but noted U.S. concerns over Turkey’s possession of the Russian S-400 missile system. He also emphasized the importance of strong democratic institutions,' the White House readout said.

Biden has made no secret of his consternation with Erdogan on a range of issues from his purchase of the S-400 Russian missile systems in defiance of the US to Ankara’s role in Libya, and its hostile and expansionary policy in the Eastern Mediterranean.

The era when Turkey developed its comprehensive aggressive strategy unhindered, ignored its past and displayed outbursts from high-level government officials with the air of a pampered child of great powers is over.

Greece has an opportunity to exploit Turkey's shift towards Europe in order to impose terms and pre-conditions for the prospective resumption of talks and negotiations with the EU.

American intervention can protect the status quo in the Eastern Mediterranean and effectively prod Greece and Turkey to return to the negotiating table on an equal footing,

Erdogan said the sanctions were a “hostile attack” against Turkey’s defence industry, and were bound to fail. The United States says the S-400s pose a threat to its F-35 fighter jets.

Th timing of the sanctions is key as it comes straight on the heels of the timid decision of the recent EU summit to postpone imposing restrictive measures on Ankara until March.

At a moment that Turkey is courting Tehran, what role will Ankara play in the strife between the US and Iran?

One can safely assume that Turkey’s tactics – which include sabre-rattling and provocations – will escalate in the immediate future.

Turkey has said that a U.S. House of Representatives’ resolution condemning Ankara’s purchase of Russian defense systems and urging potential sanctions was unacceptably threatening.

Among the issues on the agenda of talks between General Dunford and Admiral Apostolakis were the US base in Souda, Crete, and Greece’s role as a pillar of stability in the Mediterranean, where Cyprus’ gas and oil drilling has caused heightened tensions between Nicosia and Ankara,