u.s. 2020 election foreign policy ukraine

However, Erdogan is not the first to attempt to play a double game between the West and East.

On the other hand, Türkiye has taken up the role of defending Ukraine`s independence. On the one hand, Türkiye has become a harbor for Russian money and Moscow`s 2 nd most important partner after Beijing. Thus, Ankara in pursuit of national interest from the beginning of the war has played a double game between the West and the East to extract maximum gains from the conflict. One goal requires strong ties with Russia to maintain Moscow`s oil and gas flow to Türkiye, and the other required Ukraine as an independent state to keep Russia away from dominating the Black Sea basin. Türkiye’s middleman position is motivated by two important goals in Turkish foreign policy – the ambition of becoming an energy hub and preserving Ankara’s strategic position in the Black Sea. At the same time, Türkiye is actively supporting Ukraine by supplying Bayrakatar TB-2 drones and blockading Turkish straits for Russian warships.

Furthermore, Türkiye is the only NATO member that has not imposed sanctions on Kremlin, on the contrary: it has become the 2 nd largest exporter to Russia over course of the war in Ukraine with export volume doubling during 2022 from $5.77 billion in 2021 to $9.34 in 2022 according to Turkish Statistical Institute (TUIK) data.

Under Erdogan, Türkiye has assisted in brokering deals, for example, the Black Sea Grain Initiative, and hosted talks between the U.S. Since the outbreak of Russia`s invasion of Ukraine, Erdogan has pushed for Türkiye to become a middleman between the two warring parties: Moscow and Kyiv.

Turkey under Erdogan`s leadership has distinguished itself as an important player in the Russo-Ukrainian war by maintaining good relations with both Moscow and Kyiv.

U.s. 2020 election foreign policy ukraine