If Turkey is able to regain the influence she once enjoyed during the period of the Ottoman Empire, this would have negative consequences for Moscow and Tehran in the Middle East. Russia pursues a policy of balancing in the Middle East. In the course of the 2000s, Russia has been trying to weaken ties between Turkey and NATO, as well as Turkish-American cooperation. The revolutionary events in Syria since March 2011 have recently brought about divergence between Moscow and Ankara – however, the divergence may very well remain contained...