Turkey and Russia in the post-Soviet region: new challenges for EU’s Eastern policy

Russia, considering its economic, demographic and military potential, is for obvious reasons the most important partner for Turkey in the post-Soviet area. Russian-Turkish relations significantly improved in the past decade. However, the idea of the strategic partnership between Turkey and Russia was undermined by a divergence of positions on such important issues as Bosnia, Kosovo, Karabakh or Cyprus and most recently Syria. Ups and downs in Turkish-Russian relations possess a key relevance for the EU because both countries are its most important neighbors and crucial stake-holders in the EU neighborhood. Certainly, Turkey is prepared for cooperation with the EU to a larger degree than Moscow. However, the Turkish assertive foreign policy and the stalemate of the Turkish accession process make Ankara a substantially more challenging partner than before. What should be Brussels policy towards Ankara and Moscow taking into account that Turkey‘srising position, and  Russia’s attempts to reintegrate the post-Soviet space as well as their bilateral relations fluctuating between cooperation and competition?

Can the Turkish foreign policy in the post Soviet space become more convergent with the EU agenda?

What would be an impact of  possible strengthening of cooperation between Turkey and the EU on their relations with Moscow and on the Russian way of doing business in the Black Sea region and Central Asia?  

15 – 16 October 2013, Warsaw

Venue: Stefan Batory Foundation (ul. Sapieżyńska 10a)