On April 16, Turkey adopted a new system of government and replaced the parliamentary system with a presidential one, which comes into effect in 2019. Some of the remaining amendments adopted last month have already entered into force. On Tuesday, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan will rejoin the Justice and Development Party (AK Party). He is expected to assume the party's leadership at an upcoming party convention on May 21.As Turkey implements key political reforms, our neighborhood remains in flux. Having focused their attention on the referendum campaign for months, policymakers are now spending more time on foreign policy. Moving forward, it is safe to assume that Turks will update some aspects of their foreign policy. Others will be redefined.
The Syrian civil war remains one of the leading sources of problems in Turkey. In recent years, the conflict not only created tensions between Ankara, Moscow and Washington but also challenged Turkey's foreign policy agenda. To make matters worse, Syria has become a black hole for our national security, as PKK-People's Protection Units (YPG) and other terrorist groups threaten Turkey's borders. Over the next months and years, Turks' number one priority will be to neutralize national security threats next door. For this purpose, they will redefine the nature of their relationship with a number of stakeholders.
The president last week unveiled his foreign policy vision at the Turkey-Africa Agriculture Ministers Summit in Istanbul where he urged NATO and the transatlantic alliance to "strengthen the foundations of our partnership at this turbulent time." To be clear, Turks continue to consider themselves part of the Western alliance, and they won't change their mind over short-term tensions. As a matter of fact, they will reach out to their Western allies to ask for their support to resolve the Syrian crisis. It is no secret that Turkey wants to cooperate with the United States on this issue, which is why Turkish policymakers really care about President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's upcoming trip to Washington. Having shared his frustration with "Persian expansionism" in the same speech, the Turkish leader could take certain steps in the Middle East to counterbalance Tehran.
At a time when Turks are reaching out to NATO and the transatlantic partnership, they remain interested in dialogue with the European Union but clearly want to redefine the relationship on the basis of equality. Moving forward, Turkey-EU relations will be important for Ankara, but no longer their priority.
Meanwhile, Turks care about their relationship with Russia and Moscow's allies while looking to work more closely with BRICS countries.
Over the next month, President Erdoğan will travel to five countries. Yesterday, he traveled to India. On May 3, he will meet with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin before leaving for China on May 15 and traveling to Washington to meet U.S. President Donald Trump at the White House. His final stop is Brussels on May 25.
A quick look at the list of countries that the president will visit over the next weeks shows how much impact each country has in the international arena. India, China and Russia are BRICS nations. Erdoğan's U.S. trip and participation in the NATO summit in Belgium are equally important.
Obviously, it is necessary to make a distinction between one of the trips and the rest. Turks attach great importance on President Erdoğan's meeting with Trump; not only because the two leaders will meet for the first time but also because the meeting will set the tone for the future of bilateral relations, which were severely damaged by the Obama presidency. Policymakers in Ankara believe that Erdoğan and Trump can work together. Ahead of his trip to Washington, the Turkish president urged the United States in no uncertain terms to stop supporting the PYD/YPG. "Let us end ISIS together," he said. Another item on Turkey's wish list is for Washington to take some steps regarding the extradition of Fetullah Gülen, the Pennsylvania-based mastermind of last summer's coup attempt. My sense is that Turkey will define its relations with the rest of the countries based on President Erdoğan's meeting with President Trump.
