I don't see exactly the benefit to Turkey to join the EU, not on balance. Maybe short-term gains, but to do so seems to me to undermine Turkey's long-term national interests.
Why would the U.S. want Turkey to be a 'political dwarf and military midget'?He's talking about the USA preferring to see the EU as such..
And if Turkey is considering an alliance with Iran, how does that affect its relations with the U.S. during this war?Not talking about any alliance, but working today while focusing on post-mullah Iran, which sooner or later will be here. Look at the map. Iran is sandwiched between Turkey and ther Central Asian Turks, while Russia also holds a large number of Turkic republics.
For that matter, how does a consideration of alliance with Iran affect Turkey's own concerns about Islamism?Again, not talking about an alliance with the mullahs. They will be gone soon.