ABSTRACT
This chapter examines primary and secondary sources to elucidate how the United States (US) has managed US foreign policy with Turkey to contain the Soviet Union, and later Russia. Among other sources, it includes an exegesis of George Kennan's "Long Telegram" and its analysis of Soviet strategic thinking to "explain the past, describe the present, and predict the future" of US–Turkish relations. The Soviet Union with its oft problematic geography would prove outcome determinative for Turkish foreign relations. The Turkish role in the US strategy of containing Russia is a fundamental aspect of the strategic relationship. This role had early beginnings in the Cold War. Comparatively weakened vis-a-vis the Soviet Union while occupying territory the Soviet Union coveted, Turkey found itself caught up in an ideological battle between an ancient rival and a promising protector. Turkey's choice of the promising protector was surely impelled by its concerns about its ancient rival.
