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Panel on “Current Directions in Turkish Foreign Policy: Strategy, Shifts, and Challenges” was held at EMU

A panel titled “Current Directions in Turkish Foreign Policy: Strategy, Shifts, and Challenges" was held on Wednesday, May 21, 2025, at Eastern Mediterranean University (EMU), jointly organized by the Cyprus Policy Center (CPC) and the Department of Political Science and International Relations. The opening remarks were delivered by Prof. Dr. Ahmet Sözen, Chair of the Department of Political Science and International Relations and Director of the CPC, who introduced the panel speakers: Asst. Prof. Dr. Mehtap Kara, Research Assistant Vera Liubchak, and Research Assistant Oğuz Ufuk Haksever.

Asst. Prof. Dr. Mehtap Kara opened the panel with a presentation on Turkey's hedging strategy in the context of great power competition. Kara explained that through its “hedging" strategy, Turkey has been able to leverage international conditions to its advantage. Following this, Research Assistant Vera Liubchak discussed Turkey's vision of its role in the world system within the context of its relations with Russia and the United States. Liubchak stated that maintaining relationships with both the U.S. and Russia provides Turkey with the opportunity to assert itself as a higher-level hegemon. Research Assistant Oğuz Ufuk Haksever focused his presentation on the dual-dimensional populism of the AKP's foreign policy, analyzing Turkey's shift on the Cyprus Issue from supporting a federal solution to advocating a two-state solution.

In the highly interactive session, under the moderation of Prof. Dr. Ahmet Sözen, the panelists engaged in an in-depth discussion on the strategies, changes, and challenges in Turkey's foreign policy.