ECO summit will show whether Turkey-Iran alliance is possible
The 10th Economic Cooperation Organization summit will show whether a Turkey-Iran alliance is possible, a Russian expert said.
"This meeting will be collision of great-power Persian nationalism, flavored with tough ideology of Shiite Islam, against great-power Turkish nationalism assimilating the Summi heritage," said Yevgeni Satanovsky, president of the institute of Middle East studies at the RF academy of sciences.
"Transit of Iranian gas through Turkey is not a Nabucco issue. It's a key to relations between Russia and EU, U.S and Turkmenistan, Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan," he said.
"Turkey is a crossroad of strategic interests of world powers. Its position will determine the balance of forces in the region. Turkey is no longer satisfied with the role of NATO right-wing member, standing in a queue for European Union membership. It sounds its neighbors, develops alliances and causes clashes between rivals," Satanovsky said, Kommersant daily reports.
"This meeting will be collision of great-power Persian nationalism, flavored with tough ideology of Shiite Islam, against great-power Turkish nationalism assimilating the Summi heritage," said Yevgeni Satanovsky, president of the institute of Middle East studies at the RF academy of sciences.
"Transit of Iranian gas through Turkey is not a Nabucco issue. It's a key to relations between Russia and EU, U.S and Turkmenistan, Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan," he said.
"Turkey is a crossroad of strategic interests of world powers. Its position will determine the balance of forces in the region. Turkey is no longer satisfied with the role of NATO right-wing member, standing in a queue for European Union membership. It sounds its neighbors, develops alliances and causes clashes between rivals," Satanovsky said, Kommersant daily reports.
