Putin and Erdogan: The oblique dual alliance

Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Vladimir Putin

The two presidents have survived numerous crises in Russian-Turkish relations.

(Photo: AP)

Istanbul, Riga At their last meeting, Russian President Vladimir Putin was visibly annoyed by his Turkish counterpart. In front of the camera, Recep Tayyip Erdogan kept Putin waiting for their meeting in the Iranian capital of Tehran for almost a minute – a small eternity in diplomacy. This Friday, just under two weeks after the incident, the two will meet again in Sochi, Russia – despite all the power games.

Putin and Erdogan may have crossed paths on many issues. Still, they need each other. Both have experienced many crises in Russian-Turkish relations, including the downing of a Russian fighter jet by Turkish air forces in 2015.

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