Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has ordered his government to start working on an “energy hub” proposed by his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin to export gas to Europe. A project that says a lot about the convergence of interest between the Turkish Reis and the master of the Kremlin.
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“This project makes no sense”, informed the Elysée. The idea of this gas hub seems a little surprising at a time when the countries of the European Union are doing everything to stop their energy imports from Russia and find other sources of supply. Throughout Turkey, Vladimir Putin seeks to maintain his influence on the gas market, the importance of which is crucial today. You should know that Moscow continues to supply the Turks via the Turkstream gas pipeline, which crosses the Black Sea, and which also supplies certain European countries such as Hungary.
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It should be remembered that Ankara did not associate itself with the sanctions imposed on Russia by Brussels and Washington. And therefore plays his score solo. Beyond energy, Turkey is on the way to becoming a major commercial platform with Russia. Trade between countries is booming. Everything goes through a chain of ships on the Black Sea. Faced with a Turkish economy in great distress, with 80% inflation at an annual rate, Erdogan understood that his interest was to recover the energy and commercial places left vacant by the Europeans.
Despite the war in Ukraine, the relationship between Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Vladimir Poutie remains strong. Of course because of a shared geography but also because the two countries co-manage many regional issues: in Syria, Libya, or even in the Caucasus with the conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia.
In short, between the two presidents, it is a rivalry full of complicity. But at the same time, Ankara – as an influential member of NATO – affirms its support for Ukraine and acts as mediator. Turkey is the second army of the Transatlantic Alliance. But basically, Vladimir Putin and Recep Tayyip Erdogan share the same approach to geopolitics, that of a muscular defense of their vital interests, even if it means abusing international law.