This week, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer paid an important visit to Turkiye to meet with his Turkish counterpart, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. For the UK, Turkiye has long been a vital partner — not only in Europe, but also on the global stage. At the height of the Cold War, this importance was made clear in a since-declassified 1979 memo prepared for Margaret Thatcher on her second day as prime minister.