American Enterprise Institute

This summer will mark 50 years since Turkey's invasion of Cyprus, and for the last five decades tens of thousands of Turkish occupation troops have been present in the northern part of the island. 50 years later, the US still refuses to officially recognize Turkey's illegal occupation as an occupation.

With Ukraine facing a resurgent Russia, NATO leaders have been clear that they do not and "will never recognize Russia's illegal and illegitimate annexations, including Crimea." While Western leaders speak clearly when it comes to Ukraine, their uncompromising positions are unfortunately undermined when NATO remains largely silent over the precedent for Russia's invasion of Ukraine: Turkey's in

Cyprus and its emergence as a strategic partner and diplomatic link in the Mediterranean, as well as the issue the Turkish-occupied northern part of the island, was the main issue discussed in Washington, DC on Monday, in the context of the 5th Forum for Southeast Europe and the Eastern Mediterranean, at the American Enterprise Institute think tank.

About a week ago Secretary of State Antony Blinken traveled to Turkey, where he met with Turkish President Erdogan. Diplomatic sources said Blinken arrived bearing potential gifts to entice Turkey to wrap up the issue of Sweden's NATO membership. These included everything from new ways to provide F-16s to Turkey to a White House visit for Turkish President Erdogan.

Henry Kissinger, the controversial former US National Security Advisor and Secretary of State, passed away on Wednesday, aged 100.

Michael Rubin, a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and former Pentagon official, joins Thanos Davelis to look into the details of the deal NATO reached with Turkey's President Erdogan to lift his veto on Sweden's NATO accession, and break down why Erdogan walking away from this high-stakes poker game with new concessions is problematic.

Now that President Erdogan has secured reelection, the Biden administration is stepping up its efforts to pressure the Turkish President to lift his veto over Sweden's accession to NATO. While Secretary of State Antony Blinken has publicly denied any link between Sweden's NATO accession and the delivery of F-16s, President Biden has suggested a quid pro quo.

Expert Michael Rubin, a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and former Pentagon official, joins Thanos Davelis to argue that with Turkish President Erdogan's re-election essentially in the bag, it is time for the US and the EU to prepare for a rocky road ahead, recalibrating their policies to meet this reality.

This weekend missiles from a drone nearly hit a US convoy carrying American personnel and Mazlum Kobane, a top American ally in the fight against the Islamic State and the commander in chief of the Syrian Democratic Forces.

Kobane said he was the target of an assassination, while the Pentagon said the strikes "directly threatened the safety of US personnel" working to defeat IS.

Expert Michael Rubin, a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and former Pentagon official, joins Thanos Davelis to break down why Biden administration officials like Amos Hochstein, who are encouraging Iraqi Kurds to sell oil to Turkey, are doing not only Iraq, but Iraqi Kurds and US interests from the Middle East to the Eastern Mediterranean a disservice.