Recep Tayyip Erdogan
Last updated: May 29, 2026
Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s Turkey has been a decisive actor in the South Caucasus conflicts at the center of Groong’s coverage. Turkish military support for Azerbaijan — including the supply of Bayraktar drones and facilitation of Syrian fighters — was a significant factor in Azerbaijan’s victory in the 2020 Nagorno Karabakh war. Erdogan publicly celebrated the outcome, framing it as a pan-Turkic triumph and deepening the strategic partnership between Ankara and Baku that has shaped regional dynamics ever since.
Groong’s coverage of Erdogan addresses several interlocking themes. On Armenia-Turkey relations, the normalization process that began in 2021 with the appointment of special envoys has remained stalled over Erdogan’s conditions linking progress to concessions in the Armenia-Azerbaijan peace process — a linkage Armenia has resisted. On Pan-Turkism, Erdogan’s rhetoric and the Zangezur Corridor project reflect a vision of unbroken Turkish-Azerbaijani territorial continuity that analysts on Groong have described as strategically threatening to Armenian sovereignty over southern Armenia.
On broader geopolitics, Erdogan occupies a complicated position: a NATO member who has maintained working relations with Putin through the Ukraine war, a mediator in the Russia-Ukraine grain deal, a purchaser of Russian S-400 air defense systems, and a leader whose democratic backsliding and Kurdish policy have put him in frequent tension with Western partners. Groong episodes examine how these contradictions shape Turkey’s room for maneuver in the South Caucasus and what they mean for Armenia’s security calculus.
Episodes covering Erdogan address the Turkey-Azerbaijan-Armenia triangle, Turkey’s NATO role, and the implications of Ankara’s pan-Turkic ambitions for the long-term viability of an Armenian state on its historical territory.
Ukraine | Donetsk Luhansk, Artsakh | Aliyev in Moscow | Euronest in Yerevan | Ep #125 - Feb 27, 2022 [EP125]
Posted on Monday, Feb 28, 2022 | Category: Russia, Ukraine, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Turkey, Georgia, Iran, China, Artsakh, Genocide, Economy, Geopolitics, Lebanon | Series: WIR
ANN/Groong Week in Review - February 27, 2022
Topics:
- Developments in the Ukraine Crisis
- Donetsk, Luhansk. Artsakh?
- Aliyev in Moscow
- Euronest in Yerevan
Guest:
- Pietro Shakarian
- Yeghia Tashjian Host:
- Asbed Bedrossian TW/@qubriq
- Hovik Manucharyan TW/@HovikYerevan
Episode 125 | Recorded: Sunday, February 27, 2022 Website: https://groong.org/podcasts/WiR-20220227.html
Ukraine | Donetsk Luhansk, Artsakh | Aliyev in Moscow | Euronest in Yerevan | Ep #125 - Feb 27, 2022 [EP125]
Posted on Monday, Feb 28, 2022 | Category: Russia, Ukraine, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Turkey, Georgia, Iran, China, Artsakh, Genocide, Economy, Geopolitics, LebanonANN/Groong Week in Review - February 27, 2022
Topics:
- Developments in the Ukraine Crisis
- Donetsk, Luhansk. Artsakh?
- Aliyev in Moscow
- Euronest in Yerevan
Guest:
- Pietro Shakarian
- Yeghia Tashjian Host:
- Asbed Bedrossian TW/@qubriq
- Hovik Manucharyan TW/@HovikYerevan
Episode 125 | Recorded: Sunday, February 27, 2022 Website: https://groong.org/podcasts/WiR-20220227.html
Armeniaâs Regional Challenges - February 26, 2022 A Conversation with Tatev Hayrapetyan
Topics:
- Tatevâs Background and Entrance into Politics
- Armenia Going in the Wrong Direction?
- Aliyev and his Regime after the 44-Day War
- The Shushi and Moscow Agreements
- Armeniaâs Foreign Affairs Establishment
Guest:
- Tatev Hayrapetyan is an expert in Azerbaijani studies and holds a PhD in History. She was an MP at the 7th convocation of Armenia’s National Assembly, a member of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Armenian Delegation at the PACE. She is mainly focused on domestic
Armenia’s Regional Challenges with Tatev Hayrapetyan | Ep #124 - Feb 26, 2022 [EP124]
Posted on Saturday, Feb 26, 2022 | Category: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Russia, Turkey, Iran, Ukraine, Artsakh, China, IndiaArmeniaâs Regional Challenges - February 26, 2022 A Conversation with Tatev Hayrapetyan
Topics:
- Tatevâs Background and Entrance into Politics
- Armenia Going in the Wrong Direction?
- Aliyev and his Regime after the 44-Day War
- The Shushi and Moscow Agreements
- Armeniaâs Foreign Affairs Establishment
Guest:
- Tatev Hayrapetyan is an expert in Azerbaijani studies and holds a PhD in History. She was an MP at the 7th convocation of Armenia’s National Assembly, a member of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Armenian Delegation at the PACE. She is mainly focused on domestic
ANN/Groong Week in Review - February 13, 2022
Topics:
- 00:00:00 Introduction
- 00:02:43 8 More POWs Released, But What At What Cost?
- 00:20:40 Parliamentary Commission on the 44-Day War Established
- 00:33:42 The Degrading Norms of Democracy in Armenia
- 00:46:42 Who Needs Armenia?
- 01:06:32 Latest MPG Poll Results in Yerevan
- 01:18:51 Rants
Guest:
- Benyamin Poghosyan
Hosts:
- Hovik Manucharyan TW/@HovikYerevan
- Asbed Bedrossian TW/@qubriq
Episode 119 | Recorded: Sunday, February 14, 2022 Website: https://groong.org/podcasts/WiR-20220213.html
ANN/Groong Week in Review - February 13, 2022
Topics:
- 00:00:00 Introduction
- 00:02:43 8 More POWs Released, But What At What Cost?
- 00:20:40 Parliamentary Commission on the 44-Day War Established
- 00:33:42 The Degrading Norms of Democracy in Armenia
- 00:46:42 Who Needs Armenia?
- 01:06:32 Latest MPG Poll Results in Yerevan
- 01:18:51 Rants
Guest:
- Benyamin Poghosyan
Hosts:
- Hovik Manucharyan TW/@HovikYerevan
- Asbed Bedrossian TW/@qubriq
Episode 119 | Recorded: Sunday, February 14, 2022 Website: https://groong.org/podcasts/WiR-20220213.html
ANN/Groong Week in Review - February 6, 2022
Topics:
- 00:00 Introduction
- 01:10 The Continuing Ukraine Crisis
- Putin in Beijing, Erdogan in Kyiv, Pashinyan at Olympic Diplomacy?
- 23:44 Civil Contract Nominates Vahagn Khachatryan for President
- 41:21 New IRI Poll Results
- 58:57 Rants
Guests:
- Dr. Pietro Shakarian
Hosts:
- Hovik Manucharyan https://twitter.com/HovikYerevan
- Asbed Bedrossian https://twitter.com/qubriq
Episode 118 | Recorded: Sunday, February 8, 2022 Website: https://groong.org/podcasts/WiR-20220206.html
ANN/Groong Week in Review - February 6, 2022
Topics:
- 00:00 Introduction
- 01:10 The Continuing Ukraine Crisis
- Putin in Beijing, Erdogan in Kyiv, Pashinyan at Olympic Diplomacy?
- 23:44 Civil Contract Nominates Vahagn Khachatryan for President
- 41:21 New IRI Poll Results
- 58:57 Rants
Guests:
- Dr. Pietro Shakarian
Hosts:
- Hovik Manucharyan https://twitter.com/HovikYerevan
- Asbed Bedrossian https://twitter.com/qubriq
Episode 118 | Recorded: Sunday, February 8, 2022 Website: https://groong.org/podcasts/WiR-20220206.html
Color Me Kazakhstan | Expectations From 1st Normalization Meeting on Friday | Ep #112 - Jan 9, 2022 [EP112]
Posted on Tuesday, Jan 11, 2022 | Category: Russia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Turkey, Ukraine, Iran, Georgia, Geopolitics, USA, China, Human Rights, Economy | Series: WIR
ANN/Groong Week in Review - January 9, 2022
Topics:
- Color Me Kazakhstan
- Turkish-Armenian Normalization Meeting on January 14
Guests:
- Benyamin Poghosyan TW/@Benyamin_Poghos
- Pietro Shakarian
Hosts:
- Asbed Bedrossian TW/@qubriq
- Hovik Manucharyan TW/@HovikYerevan
Episode 112 | Recorded: Sunday, January 9, 2022 Website: https://groong.org/podcasts/WiR-20220109.html