Turkey and Georgia: Zero-Problems?

German Marshall Fund of the United States, June 19, 2013, 8 p.

Diba Nigar Göksel *

Over the past decade, relations between Turkey and Georgia have flourished on the political, economic, and geostrategic fronts. Nevertheless, underlying frictions have surfaced in the past year when Georgian parliamentary election campaigns highlighted Turko-skepticism among segments of the Georgian society. While there is a window of opportunity, to seize it requires an intellectual engagement on the part of Turks, Georgians, and EU counterparts alike. The deepening of economic and strategic relations between Turkey and Georgia needs to be complemented with intellectual and grassroots dimensions, including stronger links between civil societies, more substantial analysis of each others’ internal dynamics, and more awareness of respective historical sensitivities, interests, and public debates.

* Diba Nigar Göksel is editor-in-chief of Turkish Policy Quarterly.

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