The Greek-Turkish relationship and NATO

Book abstract:

NATO no longer confronts its raison d'être - a defence alliance of the West to deal with the perceived aggression of the former Soviet bloc. The new situation in the post-Cold War era has revealed strains along the eastern Mediterranean border of the NATO alliance which challenge the principles that underpin NATO's new identity as a 'pluralistic security community'. The author proposes that Greece and Turkey have yet to resolve their differences in relation to the Aegean Sea and Cyprus and concludes that Turkey has not fully met the criteria of a 'pluralistic security community'.

The work is organised over five chapters. The first presents an overview of south-eastern Europe and the eastern Mediterranean and its importance to NATO and western interests. Chapter two gives an analysis of Greek security issues and the Greek-NATO relationship in both the Cold War and post-Cold War periods and with relevance to the Greek-Turkish confrontation. The same situation but from the Turkish perspective is considered in chapter three. The kernel of the author's theory is addressed in chapter four which argues that a flawed development of a 'pluralistic security community' in the eastern Mediterranean has undermined the solidarity, stability, unity and co-operation between the two southern members. Potential solutions for these difficulties are featured in chapter five which also presents an overview of earlier findings by way of conclusion.

The work will interest scholars, students, policy researchers in the fields of international relations and strategic studies.

Fotios Moustakis is Senior Lecturer in Strategic Studies at the Britannia Royal Naval College, Dartmouth.