Abstract
In 2002, Turkish General Tuncer Kilinc, Secretary General of the National Security Council (MGK)—Turkey’s top decision-making body, called for Turkey to seek alternatives to the European Union (EU) and North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and turn toward its old regional foes, Iran and Russia instead. 1 Speaking at the conference, “How to Establish a Peace Belt Around Turkey,” held by the Military Academies Command, General Kilinc expressed frustrations at the EU’s policies towards Turkey and urged Ankara to start looking eastward for new allies. 2 Although the notion was not taken seriously in the mainstream, “Eurasianism” as a geopolitical discourse caught on with some Turkish intellectuals. In 2004, Istanbul University convened a symposium entitled, “Turkish-Russian-Chinese and Iranian relationships on the Eurasian axis.” 3 A decade later, AK Party leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan is seriously considering abandoning the bid for EU membership to join the China-led and Russian- supported Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO). 4 On 26 September 2013, Turkey shocked its NATO allies when it chose a US-sanctioned Chinese firm to co-produce a US$3.4 billion long-range air and missile defense system. 5 Turkey, with its increasingly Eurasian geopolitical trajectory, seems to be at a crossroads of choosing whether to remain anchored in the West, or fundamentally shift its axis eastward toward Eurasia.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution.
Buying options
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Learn about institutional subscriptionsPreview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
Notes
Edward J. Erickson, “Turkey as Regional Hegemon—2014: Strategic Implications for the United States,” Turkish Studies, Vol. 5, No. 3, Autumn 2004, 31.
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Copyright information
© 2016 Christina Lin
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Lin, C. (2016). A New Eurasian Embrace: Turkey Pivots East While China Marches West. In: Horesh, N. (eds) Toward Well-Oiled Relations?. The Nottingham China Policy Institute Series. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137539793_4
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137539793_4
Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, London
Print ISBN: 978-1-349-57921-1
Online ISBN: 978-1-137-53979-3
eBook Packages: Economics and FinanceEconomics and Finance (R0)