Turkish Daily News
Saturday, January 15, 2005

Towards political partnership with Russia

Turkish-Russian cooperation in the political sphere has the potential
of not only helping both countries realize foreign policy goals but
also of generating consequences that could go well beyond the borders
of the two countries

ANKARA –

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoðan’s three-day visit to Russia
last week not only gave a new boost to growing trade and economic
ties but also produced significant political developments, with
Russian President Vladimir Putin describing Turkish Cypriot isolation
as unfair and pledging help to resolve the disputes between Turkey,
and Armenia and Erdoðan announcing a surprise decision to consider
cooperation with the Shanghai Cooperation Organization.

The two leaders said they look to boost the trade volume between
the two countries from the current annual level of $10 billion to $15
billion and, in the next few years, to $25 billion. The two also
agreed to address new areas for cooperation in the energy sector,
such as electricity purchases from Russia, already the main natural
gas supplier of Turkey.

In the political sphere, Turkish-Russian cooperation has the
potential of not only helping both countries attain foreign policy
goals such as advancing Turkey’s EU membership and Cyprus bids but
also of generating consequences that could go well beyond the borders
of the two countries and transform the regional political setting.