Source: Asia Times
By Altay Atli
Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, his nation’s currency in free fall, on Friday criticized “unilateral actions against Turkey by the United States, our ally of decades.” In an op-ed in The New York Times, he said that if such actions continue, Turkey will be required “to start looking for new friends and allies.”
China is surely one of those potential “new friends,” as evidenced by the fact that economic relations between the two countries, fueled by increasing expectations triggered by the Belt and Road Initiative, have been on a significant rise recently.
In the short term, as the Turkish economy goes through dire straits and the local currency continues its slide, Turkey needs – more than ever – to secure external financial resources. Access to Chinese finance is, under these circumstances, more than welcome for Ankara.
Read more at: http://www.atimes.com/article/turkey-sees-long-term-partner-in-china/