TURKISH-RUSSIAN RELATIONS BEFORE AND AFTER THE UKRAINIAN WAR

Abstract

The article re-evaluated Turkish-Russian relations in the context of new geopolitical realities that arose at the regional and global levels after Russia's military intervention in Ukraine on February 24, 2022. To this end, first of all, a brief history of the relations between the two states, which have lasted since the 2000s in the form of competition and cooperation, was reviewed, and the factors that encourage both states to cooperate were investigated. The author notes that Türkiye and Russia have achieved stability in bilateral relations in the economic and political spheres thanks to the strategy they have developed over the years, which allowed relations between the countries in analogous crisis situations, such as the Ukrainian war, to cause them minimal damage. The relations between Russia and Türkiye are a unique example in the system of international relations. The nature of these relations is determined by their geopolitical rivalry with the West, and the war in Ukraine has not changed this fact. The study also highlights specifically the growing geopolitical importance of Türkiye during the war, which, despite its membership in NATO, continues a bilateral dialogue with both Russia and Ukraine, playing the role of a kind of bridge between the West and Russia.