"Chechen scandal" leaves trace in Russian-Turkish relations

Well prior the scandal with the detained Russians, the Turkish-Russian relations were unstable, and reports about the preparations for an assassination attempt on representatives of the Chechen Diaspora will not improve these relations, the Russian Orientalists interviewed by the "Caucasian Knot" believe.

The “Caucasian Knot” has reported that on October 20, a court in Istanbul took in custody six persons who were detained on October 8 in Istanbul and Antalya on charges of political and military espionage. Five of the detainees have Russian citizenship.

On November 9, Yulia Kudryashova, an expert on Turkey, an Associate Professor at the MGIMO (Moscow State Institute of Foreign Relations), told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent that it is impossible to comment on whether those detained in Turkey are real spies and whether they really had prepared an assassination attempt. But, in her opinion, it should not be considered that the case stands alone. On the whole, there are political reasons for the deterioration of Russian-Turkish relations, which, moreover, are associated with a broad international context.

As for the links with Chechens, according to Ms Kudryashova, it is known about Chechens' participation in Russia's settlement actions in Syria. "Apparently, Erdogan is taking this as a challenge," she has suggested.

Natalia Ulchenko, the head of the division at the Institute of Asia and Africa at the Moscow State University, a leading researcher at the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences, believes that Russian-Turkish relations are in principle "uneven"; and the Turkey's general foreign policy is aimed at showing its independence in relations with large states.

The "spy scandal" and the possible preparation of an attempt on members of the Chechen Diaspora are also within the above Turkish political line, Ms Ulchenko has noted.

Meanwhile, Togrul Ismail, a Turkish political analyst, a professor at Ankara University, believes that there is no noticeable deterioration in Turkish-Russian relations. As for the "spy scandal", he believes that it was rather inflated by Russian-language sources.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on November 10, 2021 at 05:03 am MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.