Of course, conflicting moments historical the events that took place between Tsarist Russia and Ottoman Turkey have not been forgotten. But humanity has entered a new stage, when changes are observed even in the content of fundamental geopolitical problems. So, recently, cooperation between Ankara and Moscow has been developing even more intensively.
However, it is a delusion to think that everything is smooth here. With the change in the center of gravity of global geopolitics towards the East, the role of Turkey and Russia has risen to a new level. Each of these countries has its own role in world geopolitics. After the collapse of the USSR, Russia again claims the status of a superpower. Turkey is also active in becoming a globally influential regional leader. The main thing, perhaps, that unites the Turkish and Russian civilizations, is that they belong neither to the East, nor to the West, and such character of identity is no longer observed in any of the nations of the world. Due to their geographical position, the Russians were in constant interaction with Eastern and Western societies.
This picture is very succinctly reflected in the words of the co-chairman of the Turkish-Russian Public Forum, Konstantin Kosachev: “If in Asia you feel like a European, and in Europe you are Asian, then you are Russian.”
From the point of view of ethnocultural codes, the northern and eastern peoples, and especially those of Turkic origin, had a significant impact on the Russians, but in the field of religion and popular culture they were significantly influenced by the West. And the Turks, moving from the steppes of Asia to the West, during the period of the Ottoman Empire, extended their borders and influence right up to Europe and for centuries lived side by side with the West.
Currently, Turkey maintains its incomparable geopolitical position, linking the Asian and European continents through the Bosphorus and Dardanelles straits. The Turkish ethnos, having Eastern origin, can be defined as a social phenomenon, which has undergone major changes due to the long-term interaction with Western civilization.
Distinguishes the Turks and Russians from the inhabitants of the West primarily the mentality. This is due to the fact that the Turks and Russians have their own state tradition, political and managerial culture (which was discussed above), as well as a collectivist social structure. An indisputable role in this is also played by the fact that the West perceives the Turks and Russians as “alien”, tries to clearly isolate Turkish and Russian society from their own civilization, and even shows some contempt. In this regard, the Turkish and Russian peoples have a certain socio-psychological discomfort in relation to the West.
Thus, uniquely embodying the Eurasian identity from a civilizational point of view, the Turks and Russians, in fact, are ethnically "related communities", as the famous Russian poet Pushkin said so: "Scrape the Russian, you will find a Tatar". Turkish-Russian rapprochement at the level of societies is of no small importance not only for two peoples, but at the same time for the development of eastern societies.
For a long time, Turkish and Russian peoples have suffered from many common problems. Turkey and Russia have a common destiny connected with the construction of a joint future of the East in terms of the social, economic and cultural development of this part of the globe.
Now it is difficult to say anything about how much all these arguments reflect realities. An objective assessment of them will give time. But it is already clear that the relations between Ankara and Moscow will gradually acquire a global scale. According to experts, the Kremlin is interested in strategic cooperation with Turkey. This is explained by the fact that Moscow globally intends to increase its geopolitical influence. At the same time we should not forget about another important factor. As you know, for 50 years, as the European Union does not accept Turkey into its ranks. Under various pretexts, he delays the issue. Ankara wants to change the situation.
Against the background of such reflections, talks about Turkey’s intention to join the Customs Union also seem interesting. Apparently, some circles predict Turkey’s entry into Putin’s geopolitical alliance in order to emphasize the attractiveness of this organization. In reality, it is difficult to believe in the desire of Ankara to come forward to the Customs Union. Erdogan actually spoke only about the SCO - the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, although he indirectly spoke about the Customs Union ...