The political scientist spoke about the creation of the United States "ring of fire" around Turkey

Sbitneva: Washington wanted to pit Ankara against West Jerusalem

Wed, 04/22/2026 - 07:30

Photo: Global Look Press/Belkin Alexey

Озвучить текст

Select important

Off

The artificially created chaos in the Middle East and the involvement of Turkey, which has been striving for independence in recent years, are most beneficial to third parties, primarily the United States. This opinion was expressed by Alina Sbitneva, a researcher at the Department of the Middle and Post-Soviet East of the INION RAS, Candidate of Political Sciences, in an interview with Izvestia.

Goal number one: Why Israel considers Turkey the next threat after Iran

Ankara may join the military pact between Saudi Arabia and Pakistan

"Washington has long been acting as such an arsonist and watching this flame flare up, trying to distance itself from the consequences. And the statement of [US President Donald] Trump's announcement of a possible withdrawal of the United States from NATO is a link in the same chain," the expert noted.

At the same time, harsh statements by representatives of the Turkish and Israeli authorities against each other are the desire of both sides to keep face in front of the international community, she stressed. In recent years, the Republic of Turkey has significantly strengthened its military-industrial complex, largely at the expense of national production. However, according to the editorial's interlocutor, this is still not enough for a full-scale confrontation.

"They are now trying to create a ring of fire near Turkey, a situation in which it will not be possible to remain neutral and not involved. Moreover, these provocations come from both outside and inside. Syria, the situation in Iran, and now attempts to pit Turkey and Israel against each other are clear evidence of this," the analyst explained.

So far, Ankara has managed to avoid direct involvement in conflicts, but it is not known how the situation will develop further, Sbitneva noted.

"Turkey is also showing interest in the non-Western world and no longer sees itself as exclusively part of the Western paradigm as before. But until Turkey realizes that some specific choice is needed in the current realities, it will continue to stumble over the machinations of the United States and the company," the political scientist concluded.