Türkiye is unable to change Russian policy
The upcoming visit to Turkey by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov will take place at a favorable time for Moscow.
The senior director of the Turkish program at the American Foundation for Defense of Democracies, former member of the Turkish Parliament Aykan Erdemir, told Nezavisimaya Gazeta, a PolitNavigator correspondent reports this.
“Ankara remains grateful to Moscow for lifting restrictions on flights to Turkey a week ago. The influx of Russian tourists has become a salvation not only for Turkey’s struggling tourism sector, but also for the republic’s economy, which is experiencing a financial crisis caused by COVID-19,” the expert said.
He said Ankara would like Moscow to allow humanitarian aid to flow directly into northern Syria through Turkish border crossings as the UN mandate expires next month.
“However, Turkey does not seem to have the necessary political leverage over Russia to change Moscow’s policies. Beyond this pressing issue in Libya, Syria, Ukraine and the South Caucasus, Ankara and Moscow have time and again found ways to make deals despite remaining on opposite sides of conflicts,” says Erdemir.
He believes the foreign ministers of Turkey and Russia will negotiate further tactical deals that will strengthen the countries' political and military influence in those theaters at the expense of third parties.
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