Turkey’s energy security

Türkiye is dependent on imports of energy resources from abroad, but its current economic strategy is based on the diversification of supply sources, which will make it less susceptible to possible manipulation by suppliers. The government’s energy policy focuses on increasing the share of renewable energy resources and domestic energy. Despite the ongoing armed conflict in Ukraine, Türkiye has not given up on energy cooperation with Russia, trying to balance between East and West. The main reason was the Covid-19 pandemic, which forced Ankara to intensify economic and energy contacts with Moscow again. The aim of the article is to present the challenges that Türkiye is currently facing in the sphere of energy security. The authors of the article will try to answer the following research questions: What is the primary objective of Ankara’s economic strategy? Does Türkiye have alternatives to energy cooperation with Russia? The role of Ankara in the NATO Alliance is crucial as well as its position in the international arena. For this reason the research on Türkiye must be carried out.

Currently, Türkiye is a country with the largest number of refugees in the world. Over 3.7 million of them come from Syria. At the beginning of the migration crisis which affected European Union member states, Türkiye as a transit destination provided refugees with a place at Temporary Accommodation Centers (TACs). After signing the agreement with the European Union (on March, 21 2016) and with the increasing number of refugees in Türkiye, it became impossible to place all of them in refugee camps. Syrians began to migrate not only to border cities and towns, but also to Istanbul and other Turkish metropolises. This article aims to show the impact of refugees on the situation of Istanbul and other Turkish cities. The analysis is intended to answer the following questions: how did refugees change the structure of Turkish cities? How did the migrations of the Syrian community affect the border cities of Türkiye and the metropolises in the western and central part of the country? Which socio-economic problems did the increase in the number of refugees generate in Türkiye? What kind of social problems arose in Turkish cities with the arrival of Syrian refugees?

Polish-Turkish Relations: Genesis, History of Development, and State at the Present Stage

Türkiye and Poland are located in different geopolitical areas, so ideological and social factors strongly impede political dialogue between them. Turkish Polish relations have a long history. In 2014, both countries celebrated the 600th anniversary of diplomatic relations. Despite numerous conflicts in history, both states have consistently made efforts to maintain and improve mutual relations. Currently, in the language of diplomacy, bilateral relations between states are still friendly. The paper’s author demonstrates whether they can really be defined as such.

Since 2002, the Justice and Development Party and its undisputed leader, the current leader of the state, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, have enjoyed unwavering support on the Turkish political scene. The processes taking place in Türkiye are referred to as the “erdoganisation of Turkish politics.” It is happening both at the level of the state’s internal policy and foreign policy, referred to as “Erdoğan’s foreign policy.” These processes are proceeding in parallel with the growing role that Erdoğan plays in his own party. He became the undisputed leader of the party, and then of the entire state. He is also positively evaluated in the societies of other Muslim states. In the case of Türkiye, an important issue that required analysis was the adaptation of institutional solutions to the changing position of individual entities and paying attention to strengthening the role of the individual/leader within the political system of the state.

Geopolitical Importance of the Intermarium in Polish-Turkish Relations

Currently, the Republic of Türkiye increasingly claims to be a regional leader and simultaneously tries to strengthen its influence on world politics using its advantageous geopolitical position at the crossroads of important international roads. For historical reasons, Poland occupies a unique place on the map of Europe. It is a regional centre of political contacts, a state integrating with the West and open to cooperation with the East, and having a real opportunity to modify these relations precisely because of its geopolitical potential. Türkiye and Poland remain hostages of geopolitics and history in their respective regions. It is also evidenced by the activity, goals, and interests of the foreign policy pursued by these countries. Nevertheless, one of the current geopolitical projects implemented by Poland in Europe is the “Intermarium”. It is a bloc of anti-Russian states in the area from the Baltic to the Black Sea. In front of this reality, it is substantial to pose the following question: Why does Türkiye need the Intermarium bloc? Although Türkiye does not officially appear to be in this union, it is certain that it is in a state of cooperation. Türkiye is trying to establish a South-North economic-military axis in the Black Sea-Baltic region. Parallelly, Ankara sells weapons, such as Bayraktar TB2 attack UAVs, to Poland and Ukraine. Also, Türkiye signs military agreements with these countries. The study analyses the improvement of the Polish geopolitical idea of Intermarium. Furthermore, it deals with the role that Türkiye will play in the Intermarium project.