IMPROVING THE NATO-EU PARTNERSHIP: A TURKISH PERSPECTIVE

As recent events in Georgia demonstrate, the Euro-Atlantic security environment remains complex and subject to unforeseeable developments. Ongoing operations in Afghanistan and Kosovo as well as possible future crises put a premium on close cooperation between NATO and the EU. Yet, relations between the two organizations have been stymied from the beginning by political and institutional tensions, including those raised by the admission of the Greek Cypriots into the EU and those concerning the participation of non-EU allies such as Turkey in ESDP. Institutional flexibility on the part of the EU could help resolve these obstacles and create greater synergy between NATO and the EU.