Turkey's support is acknowledged in Ukraine. On the one hand, Turkey has been a vocal supporter of Ukraine's territorial integrity and the rights of the Crimean Tatars—the indigenous community of the peninsula that Russia illegally annexed in 2014, who have religious and cultural ties to Turkey.
Since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Turkey has opted for a delicate balancing act, which has appeared to be a risky but overall successful strategy. With interests that lie in both sides, Ankara has consistently supported Ukraine politically and militarily without alienating Russia economically.
Türkiye recognized Ukraine's independence on 16 December 1991. Diplomatic relations between the two countries were established on 3 February 1992. Relations between Türkiye and Ukraine gained the status of strategic partnership, with the establishment of High Level Strategic Council (HLSC) in 2011.
As a NATO member that is aligned with Russia but provides military support to Ukraine, Turkey represents a unique geopolitical player in the Ukraine conflict.
Turkey Backs Ukraine Militarily
To put it simply, Ankara will not allow Kyiv to fall under Moscow's thumb. To this end, Turkey supports Ukraine militarily and will continue to do so as long as the war rages. This is rooted in Turkey's view of Ukraine as an important ally in the balance of power around the Black Sea.
As a close partner of both Russia and Ukraine, Turkey is actively attempting to broker a peaceful solution to the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, and has hosted a number of high-profile negotiations between the two countries.
Türkiye is an important U.S. security partner and has been a valued NATO Ally since 1952. Türkiye serves as NATO's vital eastern anchor on the straits of the Bosporus and the Dardanelles, which link the Black Sea with the Mediterranean.
In the aftermath of the Second World War, Turkey made the historic choice of siding with the free world and the Western Bloc. This policy was led Turkey to become member of NATO on 18 February 1952. Since then, NATO has been the cornerstone of Turkey's defense and security policy.
The size of the single biggest army within Nato in terms of personnel, according to research by Statista, which belongs to the US. Perhaps more surprisingly, the Nato member with the second-largest military is Turkey, with 447,000 personnel.
The Russo-Turkish wars (Russian: Русско-турецкие войны) or Russo-Ottoman wars (Turkish: Osmanlı-Rus savaşları) were a series of twelve wars fought between the Russian Empire and the Ottoman Empire between the 16th and 20th centuries. It was one of the longest series of military conflicts in European history.
Countries in which Turkey maintains its own embassy Turkish ambassador's residence in Embassy of Turkey, Washington, D.C. Since the Cold War, Turkey's most important ally has been the United States, which shared Turkey's interest in containing Soviet expansion.
Türkiye and the United States are North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Allies and longstanding partners. We have a proud history of working together in times of crisis and on regional security and prosperity.
Turkey's Erdogan hosts Zelenskyy and says Ukraine deserves membership in NATO Erdogan's support for Ukraine comes as Turkey has been holding off giving final approval to Sweden joining NATO, saying Stockholm is not effectively cracking down on groups Ankara view as threats.
There have long been parts of Turkey to which the FCDO advises against all or all but essential travel, but these are in the southeast of the country, particularly along the border with Syria, rather than on the Black Sea coast closest to Ukraine and Russia, or the Mediterranean coast, which is the most popular with ...
Turkey began sending Ukraine a form of U.S.-designed, artillery-fired cluster bomb in late 2022 after months of Kyiv pleading with the Biden administration for the munitions, current and former U.S. and European officials familiar with the decision told Foreign Policy, giving Kyiv a powerful—but controversial—weapon to ...
Currently at the top are Estonia (1.3 percent), Latvia (1.1 percent) and Lithuania (1.0 percent) as the most generous donors. The U.S. ranks 12th, with aid committed to the tune of 0.3 percent of its (large) GDP.
Australia is one NATO's partners in the Indo-Pacific region, together with Japan, the Republic of Korea and New Zealand. The Indo-Pacific region is important for the Alliance, given that developments in that region can directly affect Euro-Atlantic security.
The Turkish Armed Forces is the second largest standing military force in NATO, after the U.S. Armed Forces, and the thirteenth in the world, with an estimated strength of 775,000 military and paramilitary personnel in 2022.
In 2023, the United States had the largest number of military personnel out of all North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) countries, with almost 1.35 million troops.
Finland was admitted in April, but Sweden's accession has been blocked by Turkey, one of NATO's 31 members, ostensibly because the Nordic country harbours Kurdish separatists. On July 9th President Joe Biden told his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, that he hopes to see Sweden join NATO “as soon as possible”.
Greece. In 1974 due to the Cyprus crisis, Greece withdrew military units from NATO forces in the Southern Mediterranean, over threats of invasion of Cyprus by fellow NATO member Turkey. Later in 1974 due to the invasion of Cyprus by Turkish forces, Greece withdrew from NATO military command.
Sweden has criticised Turkey for human rights abuses and over democratic standards, irking politicians in Ankara. Turkey says Stockholm harbours members of what it considers terrorist groups - a charge Sweden denies - and has demanded their extradition as a step toward ratifying Swedish membership.
Economic and trade relations constitute the driving force behind Turkish-Russian relations. Russia, has been one of the most important trade partners of Türkiye.
Incirlik Air Base is one of the major strategically located US military bases. The base is in Turkey, which means that it is operated by both the US and the Turkish governments, unlike other co-bases.
Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan became the first country to provide assistance to Turkey. Azerbaijan dispatched a search-and-rescue team of 420 people to Turkey. The ministry also sent another aircraft carrying first aid kits, tents, bedding, medical supplies, and other necessary equipment to help those affected.