Turkey and Russia: Historical Patterns and Contemporary Trends in Bilater al Relations Page 1 of 20 PRINTED FROM OXFORD HANDBOOKS ONLINE (www.oxfordhandbooks.com). © Oxford University Press, 2018. All Rights Reserved. Under the terms of the licence agreement, an individual user may print out a PDF of a single chapter of a title in Oxford Handbooks Online for personal use (for details see Privacy Policy and Legal Notice). Subscriber: OUP-Reference Gratis Access; date: 13 July 2020 Subject: Political Science, Comparative Politics Online Publication Date: Jul 2020 DOI: 10.1093/oxfordhb/9780190064891.013.12 Turkey and Russia: Historical Patterns and Contempo rary Trends in Bilateral Relations Evren Balta and Mitat Çelikpala The Oxford Handbook of Turkish Politics Edited by Güneş Murat Tezcür Abstract and Keywords Turkish-Russian relations have had a tumultuous history characterized by periods of ten sions and conflicts but also intense cooperation. This chapter uses a theoretically guided narrative of Turkish-Russian relations to trace how different factors have combined to yield particular foreign policies and changing patterns of bilateral relations. It argues that despite periods of intense cooperation between the two countries, bilateral relations lack institutionalization and an ability to develop a stable and common perspective on re gional and global matters. Consequently, the fate of bilateral relations depends on short- term definitions of the national interest and forces the two countries into a fragile cooper ation vulnerable to sudden domestic and geopolitical shifts. Keywords: Turkey, Russia, foreign policy, balance of power, regional rivalry, omnibalancing Turkish-Russian relations have had a tumultuous history characterized by periods of ten sions and conflicts but also intense cooperation. Although these relations have varied in tone and tremendously in content, they have, like the broader trajectory of Russo-Ot toman relations, always been shaped by broader balance of power politics. In particular, the waxing and waning influence of the West over the two countries has directly affected Turkish-Russian relations and provided both opportunities and constraints. Bilateral rela tions also have a significant influence on and are influenced by developments in the broader parts of Eurasia extending from the Black Sea to the Caucasus and from Central Asia to the Middle East. Balance of power theories, however, tend to downplay how bilateral relations are shaped by social identities and historical interactions. This chapter uses a theoretically guided narrative of Turkish-Russian relations to trace how different factors have combined to yield particular foreign policies and changing patterns of bilateral relations. It argues that despite periods of intense cooperation between the two countries, bilateral relations lack institutionalization and suffer from an inability to develop a stable and common per spective on regional and global matters. Consequently, the fate of bilateral relations are