![This photo shows Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The strategies pursued by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan may have alienated some of the country's traditional allies, but they have boosted his nationalist credentials at home.](https://www.stratfor.com/sites/default/files/styles/article_large/public/Podcast-Turkey-Politics-Economy.jpg?itok=WA1OOKAV)
The strategies pursued by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan may have alienated some of the country’s traditional allies, but they have boosted his nationalist credentials at home.
Turkey, straddling a strategic geographic nexus between Europe and Asia, is the focus of conversation in this episode of the Stratfor podcast. Domestic economic and political challenges are pulling at the rule of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Meanwhile, relations between Turkey and the United States, a key NATO ally, are at an ebb, and after Ankara launched an offensive into northeastern Syria, the U.S. Congress has called for sanctions. In the meantime, Turkey’s relationship with the European Union, which Ankara ostensibly aspires to join, appears now to be fraying at the edges. All of this raises the question: Will Turkey now turn to Russia?
Stratfor’s Emily Hawthorne speaks with Sinan Ciddi, assistant professor at Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service, the director of the Institute of Turkish Studies and a frequent contributor to Stratfor Worldview, about Turkey’s current situation and its political future.