Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
A Century of Greek–Turkish Relations – A Handbook, Nikos Christofis & Anthony Deriziotis, Editör, Transnational Press London, London, ss.119-132, 2024
In the long history of Greek-Turkish relations, good and bad
memories about each other coexist. Especially after the creation of the
modern Turkish state in 1923, the two nation-states started to have
diplomatic relations. International order and relative power positions in
the eastern Mediterranean have been vital to bilateral relations. In other
words, the foreign policies of both states evolved under the shadow of
great power politics. So, the contemporary needs of countries shaped the
policies more than ideational factors that othering each other.
Significantly, the rise of a common external threat against both countries
promoted a political perspective to see the common worries of both
people. It is possible to explain it within an analogy: when the
photographer focuses on a tree, the camera may not see it as part of a
whole forest behind it in a blurred background. Specific disagreements
exacerbated with prejudices fed by grand national narrative create the
illusion that the photographer disregards the rest of the relationship that
is full of compassion on the common civility of Turks and Greeks in the
Eastern Mediterranean. The role of the third actors in bilateral relations
together with the international system is another significant factor in
blurring the picture. Greek-Turkish relations before and during World
War II present the limits of the impact of international order on foreign
policy priorities and the impact of the perception of the two nations.