Ученые записки Казанского университета: Серия Гуманитарные науки (Dec 2016)
Turkish–Syrian Relations as a Part of Turkey’s Middle East Policy in the End of the 20th Century
Abstract
The purpose of this paper is to highlight the key aspects of political relations between Turkey and Syria in the end of the 20th century. In order to achieve the purpose, several objectives have been set: firstly, to investigate the peculiarities of Turkish–Syrian relations within the mentioned period; secondly, to analyze the texts of mutual agreements; thirdly, to explore the impact of international and regional processes on the two countries’ relationship. The paper is based on the historical principle, which is aimed to investigate the issue in its development. Based on the obtained data, it has been concluded that Turkish-Syrian relations were quite tough since the 1930s and improved after the Adana protocol had been signed in 1998. Using the ideographic method, the paper focuses on the specifics of foreign policies employed by Turkey and Syria. Finally, the following conclusions have been made. 1. The relations between Turkey and Syria were quite tough in the end of the 20th century. 2. Turkish foreign policy, which was characterized as western-leaning and one-sided until the fall of the Soviet Union, started to shift to the Middle Eastern region since the 1980s. 3. Improvement of the diplomatıc relations with Turkey was not in the priority for Syria during the presidency of Hafez al-Assad, which nearly resulted in the escalation of disputes into an armed conflict. The paper is of practical importance for investigation of the Middle East political processes, because Turkey and Syria are the key figures of this region. These countries played a significant role in solving such relevant issues as the Arab-Israeli conflict, as well as the division of the waters of the Tigris, Euphrates, and Asi and the oil crisis.
