The Energy Security Dimension Of Turkey’s Regional Policy In The Central Asia And The Caucasus

Year 2010, Volume: 4 Issue: 7, - , 01.08.2010

Gökhan Özkan

Abstract

After the dissolution of the Soviet Union and after Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan, which have many common denominators with Turkey in terms of language, religion and culture, gained independence in the Central Asia and the Caucasus; regional policy of Turkey, which was indifferent to the region during the Cold War, changed seriously. In this study, foreign policy Turkey has pursued in theCentral Asia and Caucasus after the end of the Cold War was analyzed within context of energy supply security. Increasing importance of the energy supply security concept in international politics was examined, how the rich oil and natural gas reserves of the Central Asia and Caucasus turned the region into the focus of interest of the regional and global actors was analyzed, andthe “new great game”, which many claim started in the region, was investigated. Pipeline projects such as Baku-Tiflis-Ceyhan and Nabucco that were developed to transport the hydrocarbon reserves of the region to the international markets, regional policies the global and regional actors pursue within the context of energy supply security, and reflections of these policies to the foreign policy Turkey pursues in the region were examined. It is expected that competition among the U.S., the E.U., Turkey, Russia, China, Iran and other actors over the routes the oil and natural gas reserves of the region will be transported to the international markets will continue and Turkey will become one of the key countries of the east-west as well as the north-south energy corridor. 

Keywords

Turkish foreign policy, Central Asia and Caucasus, energy supply security, new great game, geopolitics

Türkiye’nin Orta Asya ve Kafkasya’daki Bölgesel Politikasında Enerji Güvenliği

Abstract

Sovyetler Birliği’nin dağılmasından ve Orta Asya ve Kafkasya’da Türkiye ile dil, din ve kültür açısından birçok ortak paydası bulunan Azerbaycan, Türkmenistan, Kazakistan, Özbekistan ve Kırgızistan’ın bağımsızlıklarını kazanmalarından sonra, Soğuk Savaş boyunca bölgeye ilgisiz kalan Türkiye’nin bölgesel politikası ciddi şekilde değişmiştir. Bu çalışmada, Türkiye’nin Soğuk Savaş sonrasında Orta Asya ve Kafkasya’da izlediği dış politika enerji arz güvenliği bağlamında analiz edilmiştir. Enerji arz güvenliği kavramının uluslararası siyasette artan önemi ele alınmış, Orta Asya ve Kafkasya’daki zengin petrol ve doğalgaz rezervlerinin bölgeyi nasıl küresel ve bölgesel aktörlerin ilgi odağı haline getirdiği analiz edilmiş, bölgede başladığı iddia edilen “yeni büyük oyun” incelenmiştir. Bölge hidrokarbon rezervlerinin uluslararası pazarlara ulaştırılması için geliştirilen Bakü-Tiflis-Ceyhan ve Nabucco gibi boru hattı projeleri, küresel ve bölgesel aktörlerin enerji arz güvenliği bağlamında izlediği bölgesel politikalar, bu politikaların Türkiye’nin bölgede izlediği dış politikaya yansımaları ele alınmıştır. Bölge petrol ve doğalgazının uluslararası pazarlara taşınacağı güzergahlar hususunda ABD, AB, Türkiye, Rusya, Çin, İran ve diğer aktörler arasındaki rekabetin devam etmesi; Türkiye’nin hem doğu-batı, hem de kuzey-güney enerji koridorunun kilit ülkelerinden biri haline gelmesi beklenmektedir. 

Keywords

Türk Dış Politikası, Orta Asya ve Kafkaslar, enerji arz güvenliği, yeni büyük oyun, jeopolitik 

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