Turkey Eyes Strategic Shift: Applying to Join BRICS Over EU

newspaper bearing the BRICS and the involved countries

Turkey’s recent application to join BRICS signals a major strategic shift from its protracted EU membership pursuit to aligning with emerging market economies.

At a Glance

Turkey has formally requested to join the BRICS group.
Turkey will be the first NATO member to request BRICS membership.
The move aims to bolster Turkey’s global influence and untangle it from EU obstacles.
Turkey faces accumulated frustrations with EU negotiations.

Turkey Applies to Join BRICS

Turkey has officially submitted its application to become a member of BRICS, a coalition of emerging market economies that includes Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa. This bid is seen as a significant pivot in its international alliances, moving away from a protracted and frustrating process of attempting to join the European Union.

This is not merely a tactical maneuver but an indicator of Turkey’s increased impatience with the EU’s stringent and slow-moving admission process. The BRICS bloc provides an alternative that Turkey views as being more aligned with its aspirations for enhanced global influence.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s administration believes the geopolitical center of gravity is shifting from developed to emerging economies. Aligning with BRICS, which also has backing from Russia and China, positions Turkey to prosper economically and geopolitically in a multipolar world.

#Turkey formally applied to join BRICS (only NATO country, EU-cand.)
No surprise:🇹🇷foreign policy aims to be as all-encompassing as possible, growing frustration by decade-long lack of progress in bid to join EU…

This weekend, Erdogan: “We don’t have to choose between🇪🇺& SCO.” https://t.co/JYV2TrO8hC

— Marion Sendker (@_MarionSendker) September 2, 2024

NATO and BRICS: Bridging Alliances

Turkey’s attempt to join BRICS is particularly notable as it will make Turkey the first NATO member within the group. This move underlines Ankara’s strategy to cultivate ties with non-Western powers without severing its traditional alliances in the West.

“Turkey can become a strong, prosperous, prestigious and effective country if it improves its relations with the East and the West simultaneously. Any method other than this will not benefit Turkey, but will harm it,” says Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.

The application to BRICS also comes amid significant frustrations with the EU. A former Turkish diplomat has cited “accumulated frustrations” with the EU, emphasizing that the drawn-out negotiations have prompted Turkey to seek alternatives.

Turkey has reached out to the BRICS club of major emerging nations that includes Russia and China, in a sign of growing frustration over a lack of progress in talks to join the European Union https://t.co/EbLQN9NSiY

— Bloomberg Politics (@bpolitics) June 25, 2024

Strategic Implications and Challenges

Turkey’s membership in BRICS could enhance its economic cooperation with major partners like Russia and China, positioning it as a vital trade conduit between the EU and Asia. However, balancing its role in BRICS while maintaining NATO commitments presents a considerable diplomatic challenge.

“This is not the strategy, by Ankara, to replace the West, but it’s a strategy to strengthen relations with non-Western powers at a time when the US hegemony is waning,” said Sinan Ülgen, head of the Istanbul-based think tank EDAM

Joining BRICS could potentially strain Turkey’s already nuanced relations with the EU but is unlikely to affect its NATO obligations. Yet, the long-standing obstacles Turkey has faced in accession talks with the EU, especially on issues like Cyprus, have contributed to this new direction. According to Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, the lack of substantial progress with the EU has played a part in prompting this shift.

Turkey’s move towards BRICS is a defining moment in its international strategy, reflecting a more diversified approach to diplomacy and economic partnerships. Whether this will yield the anticipated benefits remains to be seen, given the complex global political landscape.