Eurasian Politics and Society: Issues and Challenges

Eurasian research journal, 2023

This paper aims to provide a comprehensive comparative analysis of Eurasianism in Russia, Türkiye, and Kazakhstan. It delves into the historical, political, and economic aspects of each country's Eurasianist ideology, examining similarities and differences between them. Through this analysis, the paper seeks to gain a better understanding of the role that Eurasianism plays in each country's foreign policy and regional strategies. The paper also explores the impact of Eurasianism on the relationships between Russia, Türkiye, and Kazakhstan, as well as its implications for regional security and cooperation. The main argument of this paper is that while Russian, Turkish, and Kazakh Eurasianism share some commonalities in their emphasis on the importance of the Eurasian region and its unique cultural and historical identity, there are notable differences in the way that this identity is understood and articulated, as well as differences in geopolitical priorities and approaches to democracy and authoritarianism. It provides a valuable contribution to the scholarly debate on Eurasianism and serves as a useful resource for policymakers and analysts seeking to better understand the geopolitical landscape of the Eurasian region.

2019

Mainly associated with the views of the Russian intellectual Alexander Dugin in the post-Soviet period, the idea of Russian Eurasianism advocates the formation of a grand geopolitical coalition between the countries of Eurasia against Western dominance in world politics. In Turkey, it has been particularly attractive for national-patriotic political groups which have favored a rapprochement with Russia due to their discontent with the Turkish governments’ pro-Western policies. Throughout the 2000s, Eurasianism gained new supporters both from the rightist and leftist circles especially during the periods when Turkey faced significant problems in its relations with the West. The goal of this chapter is to discuss the rising appeal of Eurasianism in Turkey in light of the latest rapprochement with Russia. To this end, it will particularly focus on the post-July 15 period which signifies a growing rift between Turkey and the U.S., EU and NATO over a number of issues. The chapter will also explore Dugin’s personal links with the leadership of the pro-Russian Patriotic Party as well as the views of the Turkish political, intellectual and military figures on the strategic rapprochement with Russia in order to understand the real influence of the Eurasianist ideas on this process.

Turkish Studies, 2015

This article discusses the political origins, present-day significance, and implications of the intellectual movement known as "Eurasianism" in Turkey, a movement with Euroskeptic, anti-American, Russophile, neo-nationalist, secularist, and authoritarian tendencies, and including among its ranks socialists, nationalists, Kemalists, and Maoists. Since the turn of the twenty-first century, Eurasianism emerged as a major intellectual movement in Turkey, competing against Pan-Islamism, Pan-Turkism, and Westernism. Aspiration for a pro-Russian orientation in foreign policy, and a socialist-nationalist, Left-Kemalist government at home are the international and domestic faces of Turkish Eurasianism, which distinguish this movement from others. These orientations and their origins are situated within the history of intellectual movements in Turkey, going back to the Kadro and Yön movements in the 1930s and the 1960s, respectively. Similarities and actual links between Russian and Turkish Eurasianism are also discussed. This article examines the development of a new intellectual movement, Eurasianism, which proposes a radically new definition of Turkey's geopolitical identity. For as long as there have been debates on Turkey's place in the world, Turkish intellectuals characteristically pointed in one of three directions: Arab-Islamic countries to the South, European countries to the West, and the Turkic countries to the East. These three responses ideologically correspond, respectively, to (Pan-)Islamism, Westernism, and (Pan-)Turkism. However, since the end of the Cold War, a fourth group of intellectuals, Eurasianists, who identified Russia to the North as Turkey's most important ally in the world, gained significant visibility and popularity. Eurasianism, with its roots in similar intellectual and political movements in the 1930s (Kadro) and in the 1960s (Yön), already had a major impact on Turkish intellectual and political scene since the end of the Cold War, as this article seeks to demonstrate. However,

2015

This paper will focus on the interpretation of Eurasianism as a geopolitical concept, as well as on its competition with other traditional theories of international relations that influence contemporary geopolitical thought. Today, we can analyse the concept of Neo-Eurasianism which is seen in the development of the contemporary Russian geopolitical thought. Such circumstances have occurred after 2000, with the beginning of Vladimir Putin’s rule started, who, again, tries to position Russia as the dominant geopolitical factor between Europe and Asia. This paper will analyse several statements made by Putin, classified by Alexander Dugin as part of a new trend or a new geopolitical direction. The wide range of political and military activities undertaken by Russia in recent years supports our conclusion that some of them are an integral part of the concept of neo-Eurasianism. This paper will also offer insights into the significance of neo-Eurasianism for contemporary Russia’s foreig...

Central Asia and the Caucasus, 2010

The break-up of the Soviet Union ushered new political and economic dynamics in Eurasia. With Eurasia’s vast geography, and its potential to promote European energy security and democratic transformation, its promise for the future has captured the attention of world leaders like never before.

With increased violence and instability in the Middle East in the aftermath of the Arab Spring, Turkish foreign policy has been a hot topic in international media and forums. Over the last two years, Turkey’s role in regional politics has come under increased scrutiny, especially in association with the activity of another resurgent power, Russia. Both Russia and Turkey, whose elites share so many similarities in perspective and their approach to the outside world, act united in their resolution to put their bilateral relations on a firm and strategically coherent foundation. Conditions for deeper cooperation are ripe as never before. Both powers enjoy ambivalent relations with Western partners. Moreover, both Turkey and Russia have attempted to diversify their foreign relations since the end of the Cold War and move away from what they see to be a cumbersome dependence on Europe. Against this background, the concept of ‘Eurasianism’ has long been viewed as an ideational platform that can further cement Russian-Turkish ties and can create an effective drive for a civilizational alliance capable of resisting Western pressure.

Journal, 2018

The current issue of the “Contemporary Eurasia” VII (1, 2) is devoted to the ongoing developments and processes in the Eurasia and their impact on the region. The volume includes analyses of the security issues, key political developments and transitions in the Middle East and Caucasus.