Erdogan seeks to mend ties with EU sensing a hostile US

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is seeking to mend Turkey's ties with European Union sensing a hostile US under Joe Biden administration. Relations between Ankara and Brussells are at a low.

And while Erdogan speaks of turning "a new page", the list of European grievances is long. Most recently, Brussels began drawing up a list of sanctions over Turkey's hunt for natural gas in the eastern Mediterranean, which triggered a naval standoff with Greece last year. But older suspicions simmer.

Erdogan's direct military interventions in the Syrian and Libyan conflicts raised hackles in Europe, while his vocal backing of Azerbaijan in the six-week Nagorno-Karabakh war upset Armenia's allies across the West.

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Erdogan's threats to send millions of Syrian and other refugees Turkey is hosting to Europe if the bloc fails to provide more funding are a constant menace.

'Looking for friends'

Turkey is heavily dependent on Europe. EU member states accounted for 67.2 per cent of foreign direct investment in Turket from 2002 to 2018

With foreign sentiment dented, the Turkish lira lost a fifth of its value against the dollar last year, forcing the central bank to burn through most of its reserves trying to prop up the currency.
Then Erdogan parted ways with his powerful son-in-law, who served as finance minister and bore the blame for Turkey's economic woes.

A few days later, Erdogan first mentioned reforms and "turning a new page" in relations with Europe.

"Erdogan is looking for friends anywhere and everywhere," said Ilke Toygur, an analyst at the German Institute for International and Security Affairs, and Elcano Royal Institute.

Donald Trump called Erdogan a "good friend". His loss ti Biden is understood to be the reason behind shift in Erdogan's tone.