STORY: Erdogan's foreign policy shift stems from financial considerations: expert
DATELINE: Sept. 29, 2023
LENGTH: 00:01:59
LOCATION: Ankara
CATEGORY: POLITICS

SHOTLIST:
1. various of Turkish flags
2. various of Turkish lira and U.S. dollar
3. Various of shipping trade in Türkiye
4. SOUNDBITE (English): BATU COSKUN, Ankara-based independent political affairs analyst

STORYLINE:

Batu Coskun, an independent political affairs analyst based in Ankara, said that the foreign policy change stems from Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's goal of averting exacerbating economic woes at home.

Official data showed that Türkiye's annual inflation rate rose to 58.94 percent in August.

Experts have noted that Erdogan, following his election victory in May, has embarked on a foreign policy shift aimed at improving relations with the West, a move that coincides with his country's pursuit of external financing.

During the July NATO Summit in Lithuania, Erdogan took the spotlight by endorsing Sweden's entry into the military alliance and advocating for the revival of Türkiye's longstanding bid to join the European Union (EU).

The Turkish leader, who secured a new five-year term after a tough general election, extended overtures to Western nations and briefly met with United States President Joe Biden at the summit to facilitate the delivery of much-needed F-16 fighter jets for his country.

In recent years, relations between Türkiye and the West have deteriorated due to Türkiye's deepening ties with Russia, clashes with EU nations over democracy-related issues, assertive regional policies in the Mediterranean, and its stance on Syria.

SOUNDBITE (English): BATU COSKUN, Ankara-based independent political affairs analyst
"There is definitely an economic incentive. Improving relations with the EU could result in foreign direct investment. Türkiye has also been interested in negotiating a free trade agreement with the United States. Again this would be a major victory in foreign policy and economy-wise. Now the government sees an opportunity to improve relations with the West and that is potentially coming at the cost of somewhat limiting strategic engagement with the Russian side. I think that there's still a quite good deal of unease. Nobody is entirely sure whether Türkiye is really shifting priorities or Türkiye is really re-calibrating or realigning with the West, so to speak. I feel there is again, a great deal of caution on the Western side regarding engagement. But they do now both see that there is a need to engage with Türkiye."

Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Ankara.
(XHTV)