Rollercoaster Relations Between Turkey, Russia Taking on Curious Forms

© Sputnik / Alexei Druzhinin / Go to the mediabankPresident Vladimir Putin meets with President of Turkey Recep Erdogan
President Vladimir Putin meets with President of Turkey Recep Erdogan - Sputnik International
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No bilateral relations have undergone such rapid changes as those between Russian and Turkey, Austrian newspaper Die Presse wrote.

Meeting of Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov - Sputnik International
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In just a few months, Turkish President Erdogan and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin have turned from friends to enemies, and then again returned to friendly relations and a state of harmony, the article said.

According to the newspaper, most Western leaders have not openly expressed their solidarity with Erdogan after the attempted military coup took place in the country on July 15.

"[…] Putin was the first to openly express his support for the Turkish President, declaring the ‘unacceptability of anti-constitutional actions'. While Europe has urged Ankara to abide by the rule of law, the Kremlin has not commented on the issue and will continue to do so," the author said.

In an interview with German newspaper Das Bild, political expert Anthony Skinner said that Turkey's desire to restore relations with Russia has arisen from its growing isolation on the international arena.

"It has played a major role that Turkey has become diplomatically more isolated. It has quarreled with many of its former allies in the region. In a region full of instability and violence Turkey needs more friends," the expert said.

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On June 27, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in a letter addressed to Putin apologized for the downing of a Russian Su-24 attack aircraft by a Turkish jet in Syria and extended his condolences to the family of the pilot killed in the incident.

By doing so Ankara fulfilled one of the conditions put forward by Moscow following the incident that paralyzed the long-term partnership between the two countries.

Turkey normalized ties with Russia just days before the military coup attempt happened in the country on July 15 and was suppressed the following day. Over 240 people were killed and more than 2,000 injured during the failed coup excluding the victims among the coup plotters, according to the country's authorities.

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