ABSTRACT
The uprising in Syria presents another case study for investigating potential cooperation between Turkey and the EU. This chapter discusses Turkish decision-making processes, focuses on the interactions between Turkish and EU officials during the uprising phase of the Syrian conflict, and assesses the degree of cooperation that took place. As in the previous chapters, the analysis is broken down into individual cooperative opportunities, consisting of Turkey’s decision to impose economic sanctions, its handling of the Syrian refugee crisis, its involvement in the Friends of Syria Group, the Syrian downing of a Turkish jet and the shelling of the Turkish town of Akçakale. The chapter finds that the crisis in Syria is another case in which the EU wanted Turkey’s cooperation more, rather than the other way around, because of the niche links the Turkish government had with different regional actors in Syria and its proximity to the conflict. Using this, the Turkish government iterated its strategic importance for EU foreign policy. Although there was a lack of substantial consultation, the informal information exchange between Turkish and EU officials continued.
