Lethe
Captain
I dont think your understanding of Europe interms of geography and values is correct. Is France more European than Turkey? I dont think so. Ukrainian, Georgian, Balkans who are Europeans do they feel closer to France or Turkey?
Why not ask the Greeks? Turkey and Russia are both states on the European periphery that can be included or excluded from the category according to context. Russia's claim to being European is arguably stronger than Turkey's given that most of Russia's population lies within the standard geographical demarcations of Europe while most of Turkey's population lies in Asia.
Is Turkey a great power? I think it aspires to be a great power, which as in the case of France (which believes it still is one) is meaningful in itself. We probably need another term (major power?) that clearly delineates nations such as Turkey and France both from the real great powers in the system (USA, China, perhaps Russia) and irrelevant nations such as my own.
once you settle who is European than decide who acts on behalf of Europe to make it great.
This is not my conception of a great power. A great power has not subsumed its sense of national interest or civilizational identity beneath the either the umbrella of American hegemony, or supra-national institutions such as the EU. A great power actively seeks to shape its international environment with all the tools at its disposal (diplomatic, economic, and military) and in aggregate exercises sufficient power that it thereby plays a significant role in the international system.
Ok, if that is the case then UK also believe it is a great power and act as if it is.
Disagree. The UK has fully submitted to American hegemony following the Suez crisis 1956 and its aftershocks. The UK aspires to support the Americans in whatever they do under the apprehension that the interests of the UK and the interests of America are typically one and the same. The structure of the UK's armed forces reflects this.
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