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Is Erdogan’s ability to turn superpower rivalry to advantage diminishing?

The only thing Ankara can rely on is that the US-Russian conflict will grow to the point where the need to work with Turkey will override any antipathy felt for President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his government.

ISTANBUL, TURKEY - JULY 10: A woman gestures infront of a placard depicting Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan and Ottoman Sultan Mehmet II, also known as Mehmet the Conqueror, outside Istanbul's famous Hagia Sophia on July 10, 2020 in Istanbul, Turkey. Turkey's top administrative court ruled to annul a 1934 decree that turned the historic Hagia Sophia into a museum. The controversial ruling opens the way for the structure to be converted back into a mosque after 85 years. President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan hande
A woman gestures in front of a placard depicting Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Ottoman Sultan Mehmet II, also known as Mehmet the Conqueror, outside Istanbul's famous Hagia Sophia, Turkey, July 10, 2020. — Burak Kara/Getty Images

A key factor preventing a total collapse of Turkey’s foreign policy — given Ankara’s growing international isolation — has been President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s ability to use Turkey’s strategic location, and the differences between regional and world powers.

Erdogan has utilized the rivalry between the United States and Russia in the Middle East and the eastern Mediterranean in particular with relative success as he tries to achieve Turkey’s regional ambitions.

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