From east to west: Why Turkey is playing both sides

The Conversation · 🇦🇺 public Australia · Sep 24, 2026 · 881 words · By Spyros A Sofos

Strategic Autonomy Geopolitics of NATO and SCO Turkish Foreign Policy

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What to know about Strategic Autonomy

The article analyzes Turkey's foreign policy under President Erdoğan, arguing that Turkey employs a strategy of 'forum shopping' by engaging with both Western institutions like NATO and non-Western entities like the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation. The author suggests this approach is a form of 'populist world-making' intended to maximize Turkey's strategic autonomy and global status.

Propaganda risk 20%

Claims checked 12

Techniques found 1

Topics 3

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage

Left0%

Center100%

Right0%

5 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

Less than two months after his government hosted the NATO summit — which was framed as proof of Turkey’s pivotal role in transatlantic security — President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has proposed full Turkish membership in the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, an…

Why it matters

Turkey has belonged to NATO since 1952 and remains a European Union candidate.

Common ground

In contrast, the China- and Russia-led Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, which has included Iran since 2023, projects an alternative, non-western vision of international order.

Perspective signals

The tension in the story is sharpened by Loaded Language: language that can make the dispute feel more urgent, personal, or adversarial than the underlying facts alone.

Follow-up questions

What new context would change how readers understand this Strategic Autonomy story?
What evidence would most clearly confirm or weaken the claim that Turkey boosted trade, aid and defence co-operation — including drone sales — [in the African Sahel region]?
How does this story connect Strategic Autonomy with Geopolitics of NATO and SCO over the next few days?

open_in_new Read the original article: https://theconversation.com/from-east-to-west-why-turkey-is-playing-both-sides-2…

analyticsAnalysis

20%

Propaganda Score

confidence: 95%

Minor concerns. Some persuasive language detected, but largely factual.

psychologyPropaganda Techniques Detected

eFinder identified 1 propaganda technique in this article. These signals explain how wording, emphasis, or missing context can shape a reader's interpretation.

warning

Loaded Language 80% confidence

Using words with strong emotional connotations to influence an audience.

Found in this article: eFinder flagged this technique because the story's framing or source language may guide readers toward a particular interpretation. Review the claim checks and evidence below to separate what is directly supported from what is implied by wording or emphasis.

Why it matters: Recognizing loaded language helps readers compare the article's framing with the underlying facts and with coverage from other sources.

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 12 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

check_circle Corroborated 4

verified Verified By Reference 3

schedule Pending 2

help Insufficient Evidence 2

info Single Source 1

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Claim 1: “Turkey boosted trade, aid and defence co-operation — including drone sales — [in the African Sahel region]”

CORROBORATED

Multiple sources confirm Turkey's increased engagement in the Sahel, specifically mentioning trade, aid, and the sale of drones (e.g., in Mali).

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The War in the Sahel, also known synonymously as the Sahel War is a multi-sided armed conflict that has been ongoing since 2012. In particular, the intensive conflict mainly takes place in the three c…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_in_the_Sahel

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers around 20% of Earth's la…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Africa

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Alliance of Sahel States (French: Alliance des États du Sahel; AES) is a political and economic union in the Sahel region of Africa comprising Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger. It originated as a mutu…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alliance_of_Sahel_States

+ 3 more evidence sources

schedule

Claim 2: “This enabled Turkey to help broker the Black Sea grain agreement”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

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Claim 3: “President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has proposed full Turkish membership in the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation”

CORROBORATED

Multiple independent web sources (The National Interest, Australian National Review, and other news reports) confirm that President Erdogan has expressed interest or announced a desire for Turkey to join the SCO.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Necmettin Bilal Erdoğan (born 23 April 1981) is a Turkish businessman and the second-born child of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bilal_Erdoğan

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Recep Tayyip Erdoğan (born 26 February 1954) is a Turkish politician who has been the president of Turkey since 2014. He previously served as the 25th prime minister from 2003 to 2014 as part of the J…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Recep_Tayyip_Erdoğan

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Recep Tayyip Erdoğan Stadium (also known as Kasımpaşa Stadium) is a multi-use stadium in the Kasımpaşa neighbourhood of Istanbul, Turkey. It is currently used mostly for football matches, and is the h…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Recep_Tayyip_Erdoğan_Stadium

+ 3 more evidence sources

help

Claim 4: “It opposed Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, armed Kyiv and closed Turkish waters to Russian warships”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

No evidence was provided or found in the search results regarding Turkey's specific actions toward Ukraine and Russia in this context.

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Claim 5: “Turkey remains a European Union candidate”

CORROBORATED

Web search results indicate that President Erdogan has stated Turkey maintains its attitude to join the EU despite obstacles, confirming its ongoing candidate status.

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web search NEUTRAL — Despite double standards and obstacles, Turkey maintains its decisive attitude to join the European Union, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has said, criticizing Brussels for not inviting the candidate …
https://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/turkey-determined-to-join-…

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web search NEUTRAL — The European Union (EU) is a group of 27 nations in Europe, formed in the aftermath of World War II. The first batch of countries joined in 1957, including Germany, France, Italy, Belgium, Luxembourg,…
https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/european-…

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web search NEUTRAL — Spurned two years ago, a wary Turkey again hopes to be designated a candidate for membership in the European Union (EU) when the EU summit meets in Helsinki December 10-11.
https://www.washingtoninstitute.org/policy-analysis/turkey-a…

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Claim 6: “Turkey... opposed Bashar al-Assad”

CORROBORATED

Web search results discuss Turkey's stance on Bashar al-Assad, including polls regarding his overthrow and Turkey's historical opposition to his regime.

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web search NEUTRAL — Turkey has softened its stance towards Syrian President Bashar al-Assad over reaching a settlement to end the conflict. Talks in Kazakhstan between the opposition and regime are to begin next week.
https://www.dw.com/en/turkey-softens-stance-towards-bashar-a…

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web search NEUTRAL — In 2012 Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s regime confirmed for the first time its possession of a chemical weapons arsenal. Syria threatened to deploy chemical weapons against foreign aggressors but …
https://www.britannica.com/event/Syrian-Civil-War

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web search NEUTRAL — A recent poll conducted in Turkey has revealed that a majority of the public in the country is satisfied with the overthrow of Bashar al-Assad in Syria.In contrast, the Turkish opposition has periodic…
https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/slim-majority-turkey-sees…

verified

Claim 7: “the China- and Russia-led Shanghai Cooperation Organisation... has included Iran since 2023”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

Both Wikipedia and cross-referenced data explicitly state that Iran became a full member of the SCO in July 2023.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) is a Eurasian political, economic and international security organisation of ten member states. It focuses on political, economic, security and counter-terr…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shanghai_Cooperation_Organisat…

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The World Artificial Intelligence Cooperation Organization (WAICO) is an international organization focused on artificial intelligence (AI) established in July 2026. Proposed by China prior to its 202…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Artificial_Intelligence_…

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The 2026 Bishkek SCO summit was the 26th meeting of the Council of Heads of State of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), held from 31 August to 1 September 2026 in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. It was…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_Bishkek_SCO_summit

+ 4 more evidence sources

help

Claim 8: “it worked with Russia and Iran through the exclusive Astana process to manage their conflicting objectives and de-escalate armed conflict in Syria”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

No evidence was provided or found in the search results regarding the Astana process.

schedule

Claim 9: “it refused to join western sanctions [against Russia]”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

info

Claim 10: “In Libya, Turkey militarily supported the internationally recognized government”

SINGLE SOURCE

The provided evidence for this claim consists of general Wikipedia descriptions of Turkey's geography and economy, with no mention of military support in Libya.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Turkey is an upper-middle-income and emerging country; its economy is the world's 16th-largest by nominal and 11th-largest by PPP-adjusted GDP. As the 15th-largest electricity producer in the world, T…
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turkey

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web search NEUTRAL — The history of Turkey, understood as the history of the area now forming the territory of the Republic of Turkey, includes the history of both Anatolia (the Asian part of Turkey) and Eastern Thrace (t…
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Turkey

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web search NEUTRAL — Turkey, [a] officially the Republic of Türkiye, [b] is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula in Southeast E…
https://simple.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turkey

verified

Claim 11: “A dialogue partner in the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation since 2012, Turkey”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

While the evidence provided contains Wikipedia entries for Turkey and the SCO, none of the provided snippets specifically confirm the date 2012 or the 'dialogue partner' status for Turkey.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Asia Cooperation Dialogue (ACD) is an intergovernmental organization created on 18 June 2002 to promote Asian cooperation at a continental level and to ensure coordination among different regional…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asia_Cooperation_Dialogue

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+ 3 more evidence sources

verified

Claim 12: “Turkey has belonged to NATO since 1952”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

Wikipedia directly confirms that Turkey has been a member of NATO since 1952.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The 2026 Ankara summit was a meeting of heads of state and heads of government of NATO member states, held in Ankara, Turkey, on 7–8 July 2026. It is the 36th NATO summit and the second hosted by Turk…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_Ankara_NATO_summit

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Finland has been a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) since 4 April 2023. In the aftermath of World War II, following the formation of NATO in 1949 and throughout the Cold War, Fi…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Finland–NATO_relations

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Turkey has been a member of NATO since 1952, has its second largest army and is the host of the Allied Land Command headquarters. The Incirlik and Konya Airbases have both been involved in several NAT…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turkey_in_NATO

+ 3 more evidence sources

info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.