Global Relations Forum – German Marshall Fund (GMF)
“Turkey – West Relations: Opportunities for Reset”
Panel Meeting
February 14, 2024

On February 14, 2024, Ian Lesser, Vice President of German Marhsall Fund (GMF) and Executive Director of GMF’s Brussels Office, and Prof. Ersin Kalaycıoğlu, Professor of Political Science at Sabancı University and Senior Scholar at Istanbul Policy Center (İPM), addressed GRF members and representatives of relevant organizations at a panel meeting held in GRF offices. Moderated by Ambassador (R) Selim Yenel, President of GRF, the panel discussion entitled "Turkey - West Relations: Opportunities for Reset" saw the panelists examine the current state of Turkey’s relations with the EU and the US, in accordance with Turkey’s changing role within the framework of the ‘Global West’. While the panelists noted that relations between Turkey and the US have improved in the aftermath of Sweden’s admission to NATO and Turkey’s effective stance in the Russia-Ukraine war, they acknowledged that cooperation between the US and Turkey cannot return to what it was in the 1950s in a multipolar world system where middle powers such as Turkey are increasingly carving more space for themselves. Following their speeches, the panelists answered the participants’ questions.