ORGANIZATION OF TURKIC STATES (OTS) – A NEW “CENTER OF POWER” IN THE GREATER MIDDLE EAST. CHALLENGES FOR ARMENIA

Article type Research article
Year 2026
Author(s) Karapetyan R.
Journal title  Vestnik of Russian-Armenian University (series: humanities and social sciences)
Issue 2
Pages 122-138 
Publication format Print
DOI 10.24412/1829-0485-2026-2-122-138 

 

ABSTRACT

The transformation of the international order unfolding in the 21st century is accompanied by the emergence of new regional centers of power and the strengthening of integration groupings that seek to institutionalize their own geopolitical space. In recent years, one such grouping in the Eurasian area has been the Organization of Turkic States (OTS), which is gradually moving beyond the bounds of cultural and humanitarian cooperation and acquiring political, economic, and strategic dimensions. The expansion of the organization’s geography and institutional structure attests to Ankara’s intention to turn the OTS into one of the instruments for shaping a new regional order. For the Republic of Armenia, these processes are of strategic significance. The absence of diplomatic relations with Turkey, the persistent level of tension in Armenian-Azerbaijani relations, as well as the change in the militarypolitical balance in the South Caucasus after the 2020 war, necessitate a comprehensive analysis of the goals, mechanisms, and long-term prospects of the OTS’s activities. The purpose of this article is to examine the genesis, structure, and strategic directions of the Organization of Turkic States, as well as to assess its impact on regional security and the foreign policy challenges for Armenia amid the transformation of the geopolitical architecture of the Greater Middle East.

Keywords:  Organization of Turkic States, Pan-Turkism, Turkic World, Middle Corridor, Greater Middle East, geopolitics of the South Caucasus.

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