The effects of Turkish-Syrian relations on security policies in the post-Hafez al-Asad period

This paper, called ?The Effects of Turkish-Syrian Relations on Security Issues in the Post-Hafez al-Assad Term,? analyzes the bilateral relations between two countries within the content of two separate parts related to the Hafez al-Assad and Bashar al- Assad period. As the countries had been in different camps during the Cold War era, their relations were deteriorated because of Alexandretta question, water dispute and PKK issue. In this regard, this study initially touches upon the mutually-advantageous aspects of the détente period in bilateral relations generated following Bashar al-Assad coming to power in this term. Turkey is defined as a gate opening to the West for Syria, in turn, Syria is a doorstep to the Middle East for Turkey. Furthermore, the paper notably tries to examine how the Turkish-Syrian relations during the Assad period affected the regional security balances. Finally, this study briefly analyzes the evolution of the bilateral relations in the aftermath of the Arab Spring as well as the focus on the possible troubling issues in this uncertain period between two neighboring countries.Key Words: Cold War, Hatay Issue, Water Dispute, PKK, Security, Arab Spring