TURKISH FOREIGN POLICY – THE RISKS OF OPPORTUNISM (by Van Coufoudakis). Frank G. Weber in his classic 1979 study The Evasive Neutral: Germany, Britain and the Quest for a Turkish Alliance in the Second War documented Turkey’s diplomatic maneuvering between the Axis and Allies. Turkey ended up on the “winning side” having flirted with the assisted Germany … MORE

THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION, TURKEY AND THE EASTERN MEDITERRANEAN (by Michalis Attalides). Every end of year the European Commission publishes a series of reports on the enlargement process of the European Union. These reports do not necessarily reflect the view of the European Union as a whole. In the coming months, the European Parliament and the … MORE

HARD TURKEY (by Shlomo Avineri). JERUSALEM – The recent surge in Turkey’s military actions against the Kurds in northern Iraq is an indication that, somewhat surprisingly – but not entirely unpredictably – Turkish foreign policy has undergone a 180-degree turn in less than two years. The Turkish offensive is also an indication that these changes go beyond the current tensions between Turkey and … MORE

TURKEY’S BARBAROSSA SYNDROME (by Petros Zarounas). “I recommend the international community take the necessary lessons from the Preveza victory. Turkey’s national interests in the seas reach from its surrounding waters to the Suez Canal and the Indian Ocean.” These are the words of prime minister of Turkey at the inauguration of a Turkish made warship named Haybeliada. That day … MORE

THE PROCESS OF A NEGOTIATING FIASCO: LESSONS FROM PAST FAILURES IN THE NEGOTIATION OF THE CYPRUS PROBLEM (by Achilles Emilianides). Until 1974 Greek Cypriots had passionately rejected the Turkish proposal for federation, arguing that Cyprus lacked all of the necessary elements, either social, economic, geographical, demographical, political, for the adoption of such … MORE

“DER KLEINE KLEPHTE”: WILL THE NEW ‘HAIR-STYLE’ CHANGE AN OTHERWISE CONSISTENT HISTORY? (by Christina Ioannou). The most famous bankruptcy of the Greek state, in 1893, was engraved in history with the famous quote by Charilaos Trikoupis «δυστυχώς επτωχεύσαμεν» (“unfortunately we have gone bankrupt”). Sadly, that was neither the first nor the last … MORE

THE POLITICAL ECONOMY OF EUROPE’S DEBT CRISIS: INTERNAL AND EXTERNAL IMPLICATIONS (by Sotiris Serbos). During the 21st century, Europe’s environment has become more complex compared to past decades. The enlarged EU-27 is characterized by increased diversity. Enlargement has created a conflict between the complexity of the process and the disproportionately … MORE

THINK GLOBAL – ACT EUROPEAN. THE CONTRIBUTION OF 16 EUROPEAN THINK TANKS TO THE POLISH, DANISH AND CYPRIOT TRIO PRESIDENCY OF THE EUROPEAN UNION (by Elvire Fabry). For the third time since 2008, Notre Europe, Jacques Delors’ Paris based think tank, has mobilized a group of European think tanks – including the Cyprus Center for European and … MORE