Turkish-Indian relations in changing global context

Turkey is expanding its relations beyond its traditional West and EU-focused foreign policy. In order to diversify its relations, Turkey has increased all its interaction with South Asia, West Asia, Central Asia and Africa. In the Gulf countries, it is looking for close defense cooperation by joining the Islamic Military Alliance to Fight Terrorism (IMAFT) in which 34 Muslim countries are now members. Turkey’s growing and deepening interaction with Asian countries is likely to increase after Turkey-EU relations declined. India has deep historical and cultural links that span centuries, long before its independence in 1947. Turkish-Indian relations are based on centuries of historical, cultural, political interactions and mutual understanding.In Middle Eastern politics, both countries recognize the state of Israel and firmly support the two-state solution. Except during the post-Mavi Marmara period, Turkey has maintained better relations with Israel. Both countries have been successful so far in balancing their relations with Israel and other regional powers like Iran and Saudi Arabia. If India has an impressive maritime security chain spread over the Arabian Sea and the Indian Ocean, Turkey is an important member of NATO securing the longest physical border between NATO and the Middle East. India’s post-cold war leadership has been redefining its global engagement by keeping India’s development priorities as a major determinant of its global engagement, and to do that India needs a beneficial global economic and security environment where it works with every major power. India’s “Act East,” “Look West,” BIMSTECi and its increasing interaction with the East Asian community show that India’s global role is going through greater regional cooperation and connectivity. Turkey’s disenchantment with NATO and the West and its dying EU accession talks are playing an important role in redefining Turkey’s relations with the Asian powers. India and Turkey, in Fareed Zakaria’s c