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8/9/16

Turkey- Russia Relationship: What’s behind Turkey’s rapprochement with Russia?

With its tense relations with US and the EU, and the bad economic situation following Russian sanctions, Ankara had to mend its relationship with Moscow, says Hay Eytan Cohen Yanarocak from Tel Aviv University.

Russia’s President Vladimir Putin and Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdogan met in St. Petersburg and pledged to restore relations following months of tension after Turkey downed a Russian jet.

As Erdogan wrapped up his one-day visit, the two leaders were effusive in their praise for each other, promising to lift the sanctions imposed after Turkey shot down a Russian plane over Syria in November last year, and to reanimate joint energy projects.

Putin did not attempt to gloss over the disagreements over the Syria crisis, where Turkey has insisted that President Bashar Assad, whom Russia supports, must be deposed. But the two leaders agreed to stage a separate meeting to hammer out a new Syria policy.

“Our views on resolving the Syrian situation have often been at odds,” said Putin. “But I believe that finding a common approach is possible, at least because we both want the crisis to end. We will use this as the basis for finding common solutions.”

Note EU-Digest:  Whatever one might think about Vladimir Putin and Recep Tayip Erdogan's personal political style, the recent meeting in St.Petersburg between the two showed once again that Putin and Ergogan are strong and also pragmatic leaders. Each unique statesmen in their own right. If only the EU would be able to understand that it also needs to be more pragmatic when it concerns its overall foreign relations objectives, specially in its relationship with oither European countries, like Russia and Turkey, instead of always blindly following the US  in all their disastrous diplomatic endeavours and military adventures.
 
Read more; What’s behind Turkey’s rapprochement with Russia? — RT Op-Edge

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