Interview with Yusuf Tatlı • September 2, 2021
With the 2016 EU-Turkey refugee deal coming to an end, the next agreement should be more comprehensive as Turkey grapples with an influx of Afghan refugees amid domestic economic downturn and a wave of political polarization that places refugees front and center.
Facing Unprecedented Drought and Forest Fires, Turkey Must Act on Climate Change
Currently, an unprecedented drought in Turkey poses risks to cities, agricultural activities, and energy security, and aggravates forest fires. The government must implement a climate change-centered drought strategy in coordination with all water actors, both domestic and international.
NATO 2030 Projection Faces Myriad Challenges
FeniksPolitik organized its first in-house event on the future of NATO and the challenges it faces in confronting a changing Middle East, the US pivot to Asia, increasing presence of Russia and China in the region and intra-alliance tensions tied to a Turkey in democratic decline.
What Could Turkey Gain From A New Nuclear Deal With Iran?
It is still uncertain whether the US and Iran can succeed in reaching a new nuclear deal; still, Turkey could benefit either way so long as it takes the rights steps in coordination with the US.
Editor's Pick
Dimitar Bechev: “Europe Remains the Center of Gravity for Turkey”
Relations between Turkey and the West have been eroded by years of crises, and Turkish President Erdogan’s recent attempts at rapprochement have their limits. Still, while Turkey may be drifting further away from the US, European-Turkish relations have remained remarkably resilient.
Subscribe to our newsletter
STAY TUNED
Ljubomir Filipovic: A Regional Front Needed for Easing Tensions in Montenegro
While Montenegro, a tiny Balkan country on Adriatic coast, was hit by violent events and political crises evoked by the new head of the Serbian church in Montenegro, Metropolitan Joanikije’s ceremony in Cetinje, the former capital city of the country we spoke to Ljubomir Filipovic, Executive Coordinator of Civil Initiative May 21 and a political analyst at Café del Montenegro.
At FeniksPod, Filipovic explained the causes and effects of the high tensions and recent events in Montenegro, highlighting the role of the Serbian government and the Serbian Orthodox Church. He underlined that the only way forward is creating a front between Balkan countries with the support of the West for getting out of the political mass in the multi-ethnic and multi-religious country.
New EU-Turkey Refugee Deal Impelled by Taliban Takeover, Economic Crisis, and Political Polarization
With the 2016 EU-Turkey refugee deal coming to an end, the next agreement should be more comprehensive as Turkey grapples with an influx of Afghan refugees amid domestic economic downturn and a wave of political polarization that places refugees front and center.
Dimitar Bechev: “Europe Remains the Center of Gravity for Turkey”
Relations between Turkey and the West have been eroded by years of crises, and Turkish President Erdogan’s recent attempts at rapprochement have their limits. Still, while Turkey may be drifting further away from the US, European-Turkish relations have remained remarkably resilient.
Pact For Pluralist Democracy Needed In Post-Erdogan Turkey
Amid deepening economic crisis, domestic and foreign policy disarray, and the decline of public support for Turkey’s strongman president, discussions on what a Turkey without Erdogan could/should look like are becoming more prevalent. Still, many experts agree that the end of Erdogan’s rule in and of itself wouldn’t usher in an era of democracy, especially without the opposition’s adoption of a pluralist approach.
Erdogan-Biden Meeting Left To Our Imagination
The much-anticipated meeting between US President Joe Biden and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan failed to address even the most pressing issues. For all we know, which isn’t a lot, the leaders will enter into more substantive discussions later. But on what? They didn’t even announce what was spoken about.
Vaccinations in Israel: Extraordinary Success or Ordinary Exclusion?
More than half of Israel’s population has now received two doses of the COVID-19 vaccine. Despite these impressive results, criticisms of Israel’s exclusion of Palestinians from its vaccination campaign have come to the fore.