The Impact of the Russia-Ukraine War on Türkiye

THE IMPACT OF THE RUSSIA-UKRAINE WAR ON TÜRKİYE
 

Russia backed pro-Russian separatists fighting against the Ukrainian army in the war that started in 2014 and annexed Crimea from Ukraine. On 24 February 2022, Russia escalated this war and invaded Ukraine. This was the most devastating attack on a European country since World War II. Türkiye as a neighbouring country has made the “most intense efforts“ to end the Russia-Ukraine war through talks “based on international law.“ Türkiye’s not anti-Russian but pro-Ukrainian stance allowed her to maintain a delicate balance between Russia and Ukraine. Türkiye followed a “neutral policy“ during the war; and made a great effort to bring the two countries together during the grain corridor agreement process in July 2022. With the realization of this agreement, Türkiye achieved a great victory in terms of alleviating food security concerns in many African and Middle Eastern countries. This emphasizes Türkiye’s global and regional significance as a rare and vital force capable of conversing with both Russia and Ukraine. As an important regional power, Türkiye has condemned the war from the beginning and continued its high-level mediation efforts to end the war. While maintaining military cooperation with Ukraine, Türkiye has also maintained close relations with Russia by adhering to the Montreux Convention on the Turkish Straits. Türkiye’s intensive diplomatic efforts to end the war have demonstrated that Türkiye is an important and indispensable diplomatic actor in the resolution of the conflict.

This article focuses on the implications of the Russia-Ukraine war for Türkiye. In this context, both Türkiye-Ukraine and Türkiye-Russia relations will be discussed, with a special emphasis on the grain corridor agreement.