Quote:
Originally Posted by Language
I know I'm re-quoting myself, but after doing some more reading this afternoon, the tightening relationship between Turkey and Russia may not have such a drastic relationship on Turkey's position within NATO after all.
From this CBC article:
http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/putin-e...ting-1.3714628
"Relations hit rock bottom last November when Turkey's air force shot down a Russian warplane that strayed briefly into Turkish air space while on a mission over Syria.
Russia imposed economic sanctions that hurt Turkey's tourism and agricultural sectors. Russians normally fill the resorts on Turkey's Mediterranean coast, but Moscow grounded charter flights last fall, leading to a 90 per cent decline in Russian visits."
Based on the above, there has always been a relationship between the two countries, and this is just the mending of a previously broken down one. |
I did a tour of Greece and Turkey a few years ago. I was mostly just in the touristy areas of Turkey though, so I didn't see the more backwards areas. But yeah, both countries were full of Russian tourists at that time. I remember going into a jewelry store with my wife and a Turkish lady asked us if we were Russian and we said no, that we were Canadian. She said that was great and we could try on whatever we want and then just ask for help if we needed it. She said she wanted to make sure that we weren't Russian because they either steal or never buy anything, and then said that she hates Russians. I thought it was funny.
I also noticed a lot of cheap fur coat stores which confused me at first seeing as they are both hot countries, but I found out they are for the Russian. It's like us going to Mexico and buying hammocks I guess.
As far as the politcs go, I do think part of Turkey's shift toward Russia has a little to do with Western support for Kurds over the passed decade. The Iraq war is the gift that just keeps on giving.