The situation in Syria and Iraq has been the main catalyst of this mea culpa foreign policy and unexpected diplomatic breakthrough. We have witnessed a lot of interesting and unforeseen twists and turns in the region since the beginning of the Arab Spring, and this mea culpa policy seems to be the latest trend in foreign policy approaches, with the potential to yield positive outcomes for Turkish economy. This process, however, was curtailed by Turkey's demand for Israel's full mea culpa including compensation for the victims' families and the lifting of the Gaza blockade. Given the Russia's policy on separatist movements in its own neighborhood, particularly Georgia and Ukraine, and the secessions of Abkhazia, South Ossetia and, more recently, Crimea along with above-mentioned developments, Turkey's mea culpa policy towards Russia can be understood more clearly, looking beyond merely economic concerns. Hoping to turn a new page, Ankara has recently adopted a policy of mea culpa in a bid to normalize its relations with Russia, and also gave signals of normalization of its relations with Israel and Egypt.

Source: Huffington Post July 04, 2016 21:11 UTC