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Appearing as a guest on the "Fokus" program on Bloomberg HT, BAU President Prof. Dr. Şenay Yalçın commented on the possible effects of the Russia–Ukraine tension on Türkiye.
Stating that Türkiye is one of the few countries that could be directly affected by this crisis, Prof. Dr. Şenay Yalçın said that the countries most likely to be affected would be the nearby Eastern European countries. Noting that Türkiye would also be one of the most affected countries, Şenay Yalçın pointed out that our country imports about 60% of its energy, and in particular nearly 60% of its natural gas, from Russia, and said that this situation has remained stable within the framework of the positive relations developed over the last 25 years. Drawing attention to the fact that our country obtains about 10 billion cubic meters of its natural gas from the western line, Prof. Dr. Şenay Yalçın emphasized that the western line runs from Russia to Ukraine and then through Romania and Bulgaria to Thrace. Stating that natural gas is Russia's largest export, Yalçın said that the United States wants to take over this strategic advantage.
Prof. Dr. Şenay Yalçın said that Türkiye uses electricity generated from this gas brought into its western region, which is its industrial zone, adding: "Therefore, in such a crisis, if the lines coming through Ukraine are endangered, Türkiye will also be greatly affected. And not only Türkiye; if you look at Europe, it receives 30% of the natural gas it uses through these lines. About 50% of the natural gas it imports comes through these lines: 30% of its overall consumption, but 50% of its imports. Of course, these are all interconnected steps that could lead to different outcomes in terms of energy geopolitics. In this respect, Türkiye certainly needs to obtain various alternative energy sources or at least undertake work to close this gap in a short time. According to studies, if this line is endangered in a possible emergency, about one-third of it could be covered additionally by the existing pipeline under the Black Sea, but alternative work is also under way for the rest."
Is the Lack of a Solution Harmful to Türkiye's Energy?
Stating that Türkiye has no precautions in place in this regard, Bahçeşehir University (BAU) President Prof. Dr. Şenay Yalçın said: "There is the import of liquefied gas, which Türkiye already obtains from various countries; Algeria and Nigeria are among the leading ones in this respect. But of course, what really matters is to take the following into account: in such possible crises, we need to have stored natural gas. Türkiye is devoting time and money to this, but it does not yet have a natural gas stock that would last one or two months. In Europe, this has been prevented to some extent; in any crisis, there is enough to last about two months according to some experts and three months according to others. Europe has already taken its precautions, but Türkiye does not have full precautions in this respect," also noting that the relations are in place.
Can Türkiye Not Explore in the South?
Stating that Türkiye has rights in the south, Şenay Yalçın said that Cyprus must be considered as a whole, adding: "Even if we do not consider the region in Anatolia, the Turks living in Cyprus have rights there. In the future, this gas will be a very powerful weapon in solving energy problems. This is where Türkiye's importance emerges, because experts state that the most convenient route for transporting the gas found to Europe or other suitable markets is Türkiye."
Stating that Türkiye has the longest borders in the south, Yalçın emphasized that Türkiye certainly has natural rights. "The Eastern Mediterranean is one of the important issues Türkiye is working on, especially in its future energy calculations," she said. Finally, Bahçeşehir University (BAU) President Prof. Dr. Şenay Yalçın said that Türkiye will, one way or another, have rights to the natural gas reserves there.
