Turkey between the United States and Russia

Current debates on Turkish foreign policy flamed by Turkeys purchase of S-400 air defense systems from Russia throws into question Turkey-US relations and poses a challenge to Turkeys membership in NATO, which has been regarded as the most important symbol of Turkeys alliance with the West. However, Turkeys maneuvers between the US and Russia are not unique to the present era as they can be traced back to the Cold War period. In fact, Turkeys alliance with the West did not prevent Turkey from establishing special relations with the Soviet Union. This book, which is spurred by Glenn Snyders theory on alliance politics, indicates that Turkeys foreign policy moves shaped in accordance with the fear of abandonment and the fear of entrapment with regards to its relations with the US, did not only stay within the boundaries of the Cold War, but further moved beyond that era. The authors argue that Turkeys maneuvers to balance the US with Russia in the historical context constitute a strong element of continuity and a significant pattern in Turkish foreign policy. Yet, the authors underline that the motives behind this legacy have changed in the 2010s due to the transformations occurred within global, regional as well as domestic contexts.