https://arab.news/jxyv6
I have spent the past 15 years working on Saudi-Turkish ties and have written extensively on their relationship. Regarding the nature of their relationship, I often use the term “occasional partners.”
A combination of regional and international factors pushes the two countries toward cooperation when it comes to developments regarding the balance of power in the region. We saw this in the early 2000s, when the developments were mostly about power distribution and Turkiye and Saudi Arabia approached each other positively, keeping aside their domestic considerations. They were able to manage their differences through different tools of dialogue and cooperation.
However, when the driver of regional developments was mostly ideological or personal in nature, we saw domestic factors restrain their relationship. The case of the post-2010 developments in the Middle East was the best example in this regard.
However, the region has now entered a new era of regional developments, beginning with the war in Gaza and followed by the fall of the Assad regime, Israel’s attacks on several regional states, the situations in Yemen and Somalia, and US policies in the Middle East, bringing Ankara and Riyadh onto the same page once again. This time, the region is far more polarized and increasingly vulnerable to crises that pose serious threats to both countries.
