Türkiye has left behind one of its most momentous elections regarding their implications on not only domestic but also foreign policy and strategic road maps. President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and the ruling alliance, the People’s Alliance (PA), will continue shaping and directing Türkiye’s foreign policy path based on their longstanding vision. Erdoğan and the PA have received approval from the public for their domestic and foreign policy achievements and track record, which the opposition has been least able to criticize. With renewed trust and democratic legitimacy, Erdoğan is determined to pursue a concrete foreign policy approach, characterized by the “Axis of Türkiye” discourse, with even more persistence and self-confidence. However, this also carries the risk of Türkiye experiencing a turbulent period in its relations, especially with major powers such as the United States, who do not want to reconcile with Ankara’s autonomous strategic orientation and independent foreign policy stance. Türkiye has been managing this turbulent relationship for about a decade, resisting disruptive pressure to protect its core national interests and maintain its autonomous foreign policy, despite the costs involved. If the actors who do not accept Türkiye’s autonomous foreign policy choose to continue their relations with the country on the same basis as the previous decade, Türkiye, as it has been accustomed, will know how to manage this tension-filled relationship. However, on its path to self-sufficiency and autonomy in foreign policy, the country has overcome significant and critical thresholds. This allows Türkiye to open a new page in troubled relationships and be open to cooperation in a much more confident manner. Actors like the United States, which has struggled the most to reconcile with Türkiye’s autonomous foreign policy, can respond positively and constructively by adopting approaches such as opening a new page in the relationship, being cautious to prevent the emergence of new areas of tension, and avoiding actively alienating Türkiye. If they do so, Türkiye will reciprocate positively and constructively.
