Turkey and Central Asia during the coronavirus pandemic

Abstract

The coronavirus pandemic has become a classic "black swan" and has made significant adjustments to international relations. The Republic of Turkey, considering the Central Asian region (CA) as an important direction of its foreign policy, also faced the need to respond to the challenges of the pandemic. Based on this, the subject of this article is the relations between Turkey and the Central Asian countries after the outbreak of the pandemic, as well as the identification of new foreign policy tools that Turkey has used in practice to adapt its course in Central Asia. The purpose of the study was to analyze the results of Turkish policy in the region during the designated period. Based on the review of the array of factual data, a new direction of Turkish policy towards the Central Asian countries is indicated – the promotion of the symbolic capital of the victory of the "Turkic world" in the conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh in the autumn of 2020, as well as the attempts being made to consolidate on this basis. The analysis of cases that, according to the authors, may affect relations between Turkey and some countries of the region in the medium term is carried out. The conclusion is made about the short-term growth of Turkey's influence in the region and the potential interest of the Turks in the growth of instability in Central Asia, which the Turks are trying to use to maximize their course and discredit other external actors.