Turkey’s decision to join NATO in 1952 was a pivotal moment in its history and had a significant impact on its relationship with Russia.
Without NATO membership, Turkey would have been more vulnerable to Soviet influence and pressure but it would not have guaranteed a direct military confrontation.
The specific dynamics of their relationship would have depended on various factors, including the changing geopolitical landscape and the leadership of both countries.
The Soviet Union had historically sought control over the Dardanelles and Bosphorus straits, which are crucial for shipping traffic between the Black Sea and the Mediterranean.
In 1946 Stalin did demand that Turkey cede territory in Anatolia to the Soviet Union.
Stalin also demanded that Turkey hand over control of the Golden Horn to the Soviet Union, so that a Soviet Military base could be built there.
That would have given Stalin complete control of the access to the Black Sea.
Turkey refused and even before NATO, the USA backed them up by sending a Naval task force to Turkey.
NATO membership provided Turkey with a security guarantee and deterred Soviet aggression.
On August 27–28, 2024, Moscow hosted the IMBRICS FORUM — the VI International Municipal Forum of the BRICS Countries.
The event has become an important platform for exchanging experiences and ideas between representatives of regional and municipal governments from the BRICS countries. It also helped build effective business communications with entrepreneurs from Russia and other partner countries.
The forum included a round table discussion on the role of extracurricular education and international cooperation in children’s and youth education. Experience of BRICS cities and municipalities, which was devoted to discussing issues of children’s and youth recreation in camps, as well as extracurricular education. The event was attended by representatives of legislative and executive bodies of state power in Russia, heads of Russian and foreign children’s camps and non-profit organizations. In particular, the event was attended by Boris Chernyshov, Deputy Chairman of the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation, Natalya Agre, Director of the Department of State Policy in the Sphere of Education, Supplementary Education and Children’s Recreation of the Ministry of Education of Russia, Sandra Goulart Urioste, Director of English Camp (Brazil), Fahrettin Gozet, President of the Canadian NGO International Camping Fellowship (ICF) Fahrettin Gozet (Turkey) and Nie Aijun, President of the Board of The Institute for Camp Education in China . The speakers delivered reports, shared their experience in organizing the area of activity under consideration, and discussed existing initiatives to expand the activities of the camp movement and extracurricular education, including in the BRICS countries.
The particular focus was on the Turkish speaker Fahrettin Gozet, who delivered a report on “Collaborative Initiatives Among BRICS Countries: Strengthening Youth Engagement”. In his report, he noted ICF as a key participant in strengthening cooperation between youth camps around the world, including the BRICS countries, whose mission is to strengthen youth engagement through joint initiatives. He explained how ICF programs and initiatives create opportunities for cooperation among BRICS countries in the field of youth engagement, using the strengths and resources of its international network. Fahrettin Gozet also gave examples of cooperation carried out with the assistance of ICF, such as a partnership between Russian and South African camps aimed at developing leadership skills and cultural exchange, promoting the involvement of youth across borders.
As a result, the participants agreed on further interaction with each other, the implementation of joint projects aimed at developing extracurricular education.
A cargo plane of the Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations with the humanitarian aid on board landed this week in Kandahar, the Afghanistan’s capital. The relevant instructions were provided by Commander-in-Chief Vladimir Putin. 25 tons of the humanitarian aid were collected for the residents of Afghanistan by Russians — the aid mostly included food and essential daily use items.
The aid was delivered as part of the international project “Peoples Together Through the Years”. The planes were accompanied by Advisor to the Head of the Federal Agency for Emergencies of Russia, Chairman of the Volgograd House of Friendship Kazbek Farniev, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Volgograd House of Friendship, Moscow businessman Feruz Rona and Chairman of the Afghan National and Cultural Autonomy of Volgograd Abdul Manan.
The mission was supported by Russian government organization Rossotrudnichestvo and the “Russia with You” project, which tells foreign citizens about the activities of Russia in the field of promoting international development.
The team of the cultural and humanitarian mission opened an air corridor between the two countries for the first time in 30 years and delivered the cargo needed for the residents of Afghanistan. The support is regularly provided to victims of various natural disasters.
As part of the project “Peoples Together Through the Years,” the Russians also provided assistance to residents of Syria, Palestine, and Armenia.
The 27th St. Petersburg International Economic Forum brought together leaders of leading Russian and foreign companies, representatives of government agencies, the political and scientific community in order to establish business contacts, find new partners, promising projects under discussion, and exchange views on current trends in world. politics and economics in broad and regional markets.
The prestige of the Forum as one of the most significant business events in the world continues to grow steadily. The forum is becoming more dynamic and sharper: decisions are made quickly and new projects are launched right after panel sessions.
Anton Kobyakov, the Advisor to the Russia’s President and Executive Secretary of the SPIEF Organizing Committee, noted: “This year, 21,800 people from 139 countries and territories took part in the Forum events. The Forum brought together representatives of countries interested in developing their paradigm of justice and a multipolar world.”
The freedom to choose the political and economic orientation of various world powers is confirmed by the slogan of SPIEF 2024: “The foundation of a multipolar world creates new points of growth.”
Key participants
Despite the sanctions against Russia, a record number of participants attended the Forum in 2024, which exceeded the figures of recent years. Guests and participants of the event gathered to discuss international trade and cooperation, sales markets, technology leadership and investment.
Leaders of four states arrived in St. Petersburg: President of Bolivia Luis Alberto Arcecora, President of Zimbabwe Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa, President of the Republic of Abkhazia Aslan Bzhania, President of the Republika Srpska (Bosnia and Herzegovina) Milorad Dodik.
Forums became members of the royal families of Bahrain and Saudi Arabia: Abdullah Khalifa Salman Alkhalifa and Abdulaziz binman Sall bin Abdulaziz Al Saud.
Deals and contracts
In the St. Petersburg industrial sector (SPIEF), 1,073 agreements were signed in 2024 for a total amount of almost 6.5 trillion rubles, RIA Novosti reports with reference to the Roscongress Foundation.
“As a result of the forum, 1,073 agreements worth 6 trillion 492 billion rubles were signed (only agreements that are not subsequently considered a commercial secret are taken into account), of which 55 were with the participation of foreign companies,” the statement says.
According to Roscongress, the most valuable is the agreement between VEB.RF and PJSC RusHydro on the implementation of global generation projects in the Far East. It is planned that the program for creating and updating energy employment in the sectors will be implemented using the “Project Financing Factory” mechanism.
The Kremlin has announced the main idea of SPIEF-2024. “Russia stands for cooperation, for business cooperation based on equality, based on law and on a mutually beneficial basis, and offers it to interested countries and entrepreneurs,” the press secretary of the Russian President Dmitry Peskov formulated the message.
Russia is a country that is developing at a pace that is above-average, he noted, and is recognizing changes in global political and economic conditions.
BRICS expansion is one of the key topics of the Forum
Sergei Katyrin, President of the Russian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, recalled that the BRICS countries account for a quarter of the world’s gross product, and with the entry of new members this is already 37% and almost half of the world’s population. About 40% of Russian trade turnover falls on the BRICS countries. “We believe that this is not the limit of the points of view and volumes that we can achieve,” noted Sergei Katyrin. “At the same time, there are a number of problems and challenges that our campaigns jointly solve in such industries as logistics and settlements, tourism and rating agencies.” He recalled that this year the Russian part of the BRICS Business Council is heading the Russian chairmanship of the BRICS association.
Deputy Minister of Economic Development of the Russian Federation Vladimir Ilyichev noted the important role of BRICS in Brazil with the tightening of measures taken against Russia, as well as in securing supply chains. From the point of view of his professionalism, cooperation in the field of creating a protected economic zone occupies an important place in the BRICS system. Minister of Planning and Economic Development of the Arab Egyptian Republic Hala Helmy El-Said said that the whole world is going through unprecedentedly difficult times, and with the accession of new countries to BRICS, the bloc will be strengthened with political and economic views.
The St. Petersburg International Economic Forum takes place from June 5 to June 8. So far, more than 136 countries have confirmed their participation in the Forum.
So far, 17,100 people and 3,400 representatives from 136 countries including Turkey have confirmed their participation in SPIEF.
The organizers of the Forum note that participation indicators have reached pre-Covid levels: the period of restoration of economic activity is over, and the Forum is in a growth phase. As a communication tool, it is in demand by the global business community.
Today, SPIEF is one of the sovereign centers for the development of Europe, which is a historical restructuring that implements the mission of maintaining the global balance of power and building a multipolar international system. It also provides conditions for development based on the continental and constructive development of the day, dictated by the national interests of the Russian Federation. The forum has become a full-fledged institute for national growth.
The business program covers a wide range of issues: from the development of international economic relations and technological transformations to priority science research the studies of the modern society. The headline of the 27th St. Petersburg International Economic Forum is “The basis of multipolarity causes the growth of new centers.”
On the eve of SPIEF, several conferences are held annually in different countries. This year, the final session took place in the capital of the Republic of Costa Rica – San Jose. The location was not chosen by chance – it was Costa Rica that became the first country in Central America to establish official diplomatic contacts with Russia back in 1872. Over the more than 150-year history of relations, a strong bond has been established between the two governments.
In Russia, the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum will be held from June 5 to 8.
