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Turkey and Iran are on opposite sides of a bloody civil war in Syria. But competition is not novel to these countries, and the intensity of their current rivalry may be exaggerated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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The article discusses Turkey's relations with Iraq, Iran and Syria. These relations are shaped not only by current developments and issues, but also by deeper, structural determinants, which mold Turkish policy towards the Middle East. The first of these determinants, historical memories, has been shaped above all by the events surrounding the Ottoman Empire's final dissolution in the early twentieth century and has left a legacy of territorial grievances, resentments and mutual suspicions which continue to affect Turkey's relations with Iraq and Syria.

The article presents information about several papers based on Turkey's foreign relations with several countries including Iran, Iraq and Syria.

The article discusses common issues affecting Turkey's relations with Iraq, Iran and Syria. At the December 1980 meeting of the Turkish-Iraqi Joint Committee on Economics, the two sides agreed to establish a JTC to study matters relating to regional waters, in particular, the Euphrates and Tigris river basins. Turkey's dispute with Syria over water rights, since the early 1980s, in particular, has become closely entwined with a further dispute arising out of Syria's patronage of anti-Turkish terrorist and subversive groups.