Recep Tayyip Erdogan

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.

Stepanakert Cluster Bombed | Turkey's Role | Russia Quiet | What's Next? | Ep. 20 - Oct 4, 2020 [EP20]

Posted on Monday, Oct 5, 2020 | Category: Armenia, Artsakh, Azerbaijan, Nagorno Karabakh, Turkey, Russia, Georgia, Iran, Syria, Geopolitics

ANN/Groong Week in Review - October 4, 2020

Topics:

Stepanakert under persistent bombardment using banned cluster bombs.
Turkeyâs role in the war.
Why is Russia quiet?
What can we expect next?

Guests:

Episode 20 | Recorded: Oct 3, 2020

Armenia-Azerbaijan Conflict in Regional Context - Libaridian / De Waal (Ep. 19) [EP19]

Posted on Saturday, Oct 3, 2020 | Category: Russia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Turkey, Iran, Middle East, Genocide, Artsakh, China, Geopolitics, Georgia, Human Rights, India, Lebanon, Syria | Series: COG

Conversations on Groong - October 3, 2020

It has now been 7 days since Azerbaijan initiated a wide-scale attack against Armenia and Artsakh. The tragic news of deaths and destruction continue to stream in every hour.

In todayâs conversation on Groong, we talk to Jirair Libaridian and Thomas DeWaal about the regional geopolitics that helped create a ripe environment for renewed fighting and various potential scenarios that may develop as a result of it.

Questions explored:

What was the path leading to the latest escalation?
Why has Turkey taken an active role in the conflict?
Was Russia

Armenia-Azerbaijan Conflict in Regional Context - Libaridian / De Waal (Ep. 19) [EP19]

Posted on Saturday, Oct 3, 2020 | Category: Russia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Turkey, Iran, Middle East, Genocide, Artsakh, China, Geopolitics, Georgia, Human Rights, India, Lebanon, Syria

Conversations on Groong - October 3, 2020

It has now been 7 days since Azerbaijan initiated a wide-scale attack against Armenia and Artsakh. The tragic news of deaths and destruction continue to stream in every hour.

Questions explored:

What was the path leading to the latest escalation?
Why has Turkey taken an active role in the conflict?
Was Russia

ANN/Groong Week in Review - (Ep #14) - 09/13/2020 [EP14]

Posted on Monday, Sep 14, 2020 | Category: Armenia, Russia, Azerbaijan, Turkey, Iran, Israel, India, China, Georgia, Ukraine | Series: WIR

ANN/Groong Week in Review - 09/13/2020

Topics:

Electoral Reforms in Armenia
Journalist Dana Mazalov passes away
ANSEF Reorganization
My Step MP Arsen Julfalakyan Resigns from Parliament
Russian Opposition Leader Navalny’s Poisoning and Recovery
What is going on in Baku?
- Azeri pressure on Arms Providers to Armenia
- Aliyev vs. Aliyeva?
- Caucasus 2020 Joint Military Exercises and those MIA

Guests

Asbed Kotchikian
Emil Sanamyan
Alen Zamanyan

Hosts

Hovik Manucharyan
Asbed Bedrossian

Website: https://groong.org/podcasts/WiR-20200913.html Episode 14 | Recorded on September 13, 2020

ANN/Groong Week in Review - (Ep #14) - 09/13/2020 [EP14]

Posted on Monday, Sep 14, 2020 | Category: Armenia, Russia, Azerbaijan, Turkey, Iran, Israel, India, China, Georgia, Ukraine

ANN/Groong Week in Review - 09/13/2020

Topics:

Electoral Reforms in Armenia
Journalist Dana Mazalov passes away
ANSEF Reorganization
My Step MP Arsen Julfalakyan Resigns from Parliament
Russian Opposition Leader Navalny’s Poisoning and Recovery
What is going on in Baku?
- Azeri pressure on Arms Providers to Armenia
- Aliyev vs. Aliyeva?
- Caucasus 2020 Joint Military Exercises and those MIA

Guests