Sergei Koritsky, who worked as a diplomat in Turkey for more than six years, wondered: what do Turks know and think about Russia and Russians? “What are the first three words, phrases, associations that come to your mind when you hear about Russia?” Among Koritsky's interlocutors are entrepreneurs and waiters, taxi drivers and police officers, artists, students and many others. The answers he heard were both familiar and unexpected and interesting.

Moscow. Very cold. Tourists. - Do tourists from Russia buy carpets? - Almost none... - Would you like me to send you photos by email? - I don't have an email address. (Doğan Tudun, salesman in a carpet store, 19 years old)

Aralov. Yesenin. Mamaev kurgan. - Why Aralov? - This is the first ambassador of Soviet Russia in Ankara. Along with Frunze and Voroshilov, he played an important role in the history of the Turkish Republic. - Do you know Yesenin’s poems? - “Goodbye, my friend, without a hand, without a word...” When I was in Konstantinovo, I saw an autograph of this poem in the museum. I was very impressed. - Have you been to Volgograd? - Certainly. I was also on Mamayev Kurgan. This is the place where the history of the world was made. We must not forget the cruelty of Hitler's fascism and the heroism of Russian soldiers. - It’s a little unusual to see your UAZ on the streets of Antalya with the “Guard” sign on the door. - I really love this car. I also have a white Volga, hello from the 1970s, but it doesn’t drive, it’s parked in the hotel courtyard under the palm trees. (Aziz Dincher, hotel director)

Vodka. Beautiful girls. Visa-free regime for Turks. -Have you ever been to Russia? - No, but I really want to go. - Are you a musician? - Music is my hobby; in the evenings I play in a bar. And so I am a student, studying at the Faculty of Management of the Mediterranean University. (Mustafa Tumer, student, 26 years old)

Moscow roads have five or six lanes. Pavel Bure. Maria Sharapova. - The roads in Moscow are really wide, but traffic jams remain... - Unfortunately, this is true, but it’s still impressive. (Umit Gokdas, tennis coach, 41 years old)

Literature. Rich story. Bargain. - Why bargaining? - love to bargain. - Do you know anything from Russian literature? - I read Dostoevsky’s Notes from Underground four times. (Bulent Isik, manager of a coffee shop on wheels, 28 years old)

Snow (I came to Antalya from Germany three years ago, I haven’t seen snow since then, I miss it). Majestic historical buildings (I’ve never been to Russia, but I know). I also know that Russian is a very difficult language. - Why did you come from Germany to Antalya? - Fate, probably. - Are you satisfied? - Very. (Eda Su Sezer, waitress at the bar)

Friendly people. Democracy. Decency. - Do Russians buy anything from you? - Yes, I have many buyers from Russia. (Atilla Bakhchivan, small shop owner, 60 years old)

My girlfriend. Vodka. Cold climate. - What does your girlfriend have to do with it? - She herself is from Georgia, but speaks Russian. - Do you work somewhere? - Not yet, at the end of the year I’m going to serve in the gendarmerie. (Yusuf Durmush)

Vodka. Beautiful girls... - More? - (in Russian) Board immediately. - ??? - I worked at the local airport for a long time, I will never forget these words. (Umit Chinar, 23 years old)

Lenin. Stalingrad. Gorbachev. - What comes to mind when you remember Gorbachev? - For some reason, his birthmark on his head always reminded me of a map of the island of Cyprus. (Onder Felek, restaurant manager, 29 years old)

Nazim Hikmet*. Saint Petersburg. Dostoevsky. - Have you ever been to St. Petersburg? - Yes, this city made a great impression on me. And in general: three words about Russia are very little. (Can Emiji, member of the dance group “Fire of Anatolia”, 40 years old) * Nazym Hikmet is a famous Turkish poet, the last years of his life he lived and was buried in Moscow.

A country that is friendly to us. Sochi. Red Army. - Have you been to Sochi? - No, but I watched the opening ceremony of the 2014 Olympics. It was great. - Why the Red Army? - I would like to see the Red Army Choir perform in Antalya. I also want to ask a question: do they shave with a straight razor in hairdressers in Russia? (Sedat Gundogdu, hairdresser)

Kazan. Grey colour. Train. - Have you ever been to Kazan? - No. - Why gray? - I feel so. - Why the train? - About 30 years ago I watched a documentary about the Trans-Siberian Railway on Turkish television. I still remember. (Agyah Gargun, coordinator of Antalya Harley-Davidson Club, 47 years old)

Hospitality. Mafia. Russian tourists - without them our hotels and pockets would remain empty. - Have you traveled to Russia? - Twice, I lived in Moscow with friends, I really liked it. - Did you see the mafia there? - No. (Baki Kefes, taxi driver, 49 years old)

Samara. Putin. Leningrad. - Why Samara? - My son is an engineer, he worked in Samara for some time. (Selcuk Sodim, 72 years old)

"Dynamo Moscow". Volleyball player Ekaterina Gamova. Happy men. - Why do you think Russian men are happy? - Because Russian women are beautiful. (Atilla Turkyilmaz, former physical education teacher, retired)

Kars*. Natural gas. Kremlin Palace. - Why Kars? - I served there. They say that Kars is very similar to ancient Russian cities. Even today there is a lot that resembles Russia. - Do you want to wish anything to your Russian colleagues? - To the police in Russia, and in other countries, I would like to wish patience. (Osman Bashtug, policeman, 43 years old) *Kars is a city in northeastern Turkey, in 1878–1917 it was part of the Russian Empire.

Friendly people. Hospitality. Red Square, which we really want to see. - Do Russians come to your restaurant? - Yes, often, Russians are very fond of Turkish cuisine. (Muharrem and Sibel Iyioz, owners of the Beydagi restaurant)

Moscow. St. Petersburg... - Third word? - (in Russian) “Come on!” (Buse Gundogan, member of the dance group “Fire of Anatolia”)

Great country. Art. Freedom. - In your opinion, in Russia people of art are free in their creativity? - I have many friends in Russia - artists, sculptors. I know that in their creativity they feel free. I’ll add separately: Russian sculptors are the best in the world. - Is that your portrait in the back? - Self-portrait. (Savash Altai, artist, 59 years old)

Russians are our friends. Snow. Nuclear power. - Why did you name nuclear energy? - The Russians are building the first nuclear power plant in Turkey. - Where are you from? - From Trabzon. (Ali Shahinkaya, cafe manager, 37 years old)

Rich culture. Saint Petersburg. Along with the USA and Great Britain, the leading power in the world. (Ramazan Zerdali, restaurant worker, 25 years old)

Siberia. Borsch. The Kiev's cutlets. - Of the dishes mentioned above, what do you cook most often in Turkey? - Sometimes we arrange a “Russian evening” in a restaurant, then we make sure to cook chicken Kiev. (Erkan Ashci, 31 years old, Erdem Arici, 32 years old, cooks)

Our good neighbor. Great civilization. A country I would like to visit. (Talat Aktash, sea taxi captain, 44 years old)

Have you ever played in association? This is when they say a word to you, and without hesitation you must name the first association that immediately flashed through your head. Psychologists say that this is the most effective way to find out your real attitude towards a particular subject, because the subconscious mind, which does not know how to lie, is responsible for you.

Based on this fact, diplomat Sergei Koritsky, who worked in Turkey for several years, decided to find out what the Turks think about Russia and Russians. For a month, he photographed the residents of Antalya and asked the same question: “What are the first three words, phrases, associations that come to your mind when you hear about Russia?”

Among those interviewed by Koritsky were waiters, teachers, artists, tourists, police officers, entrepreneurs and others. Many of the answers heard were quite expected and very stereotypical, and some were truly surprising.

— Moscow. Very cold. Tourists.— Do tourists from Russia buy carpets? - Almost none... - Would you like me to send you photos by email? — I don't have an email address. (Doğan Tudun, salesman in a carpet store, 19 years old)

As you can see, Russia and Russians evoke very diverse associations! But the most important thing is that almost all of them are positive. And Russian girls and our friendliness, as always, are at the TOP.

I love these videos and lists on forums listing why the Turks love us.

We are beautiful, and well-groomed, and we go to museums and galleries, but we don’t leave theaters. And we love until we lose our pulse, and we are also smart, each of us has two higher and three languages. And we cook and raise children, and work and have time to take care of ourselves, but in bed there is generally fire, unselfish, obedient, not picky. In a word, where are the Turkish women with their seeds in front of the TV?
In short, according to the statistics of foreign brides among Turks (2017), Syrians, Azerbaijanis and Germans are in the lead. The number of German women exceeds the number of brides from Ukraine, Russia and Belarus combined. At the same time, less than four percent of Turkish citizens marry foreigners. The rest marry Turkish women.

There is no Russian, Ukrainian or Belarusian language in the Turkish marriage certificate, although there are several foreign languages ​​there

A foreign wife is not a gift at all. She does not know the language, she cannot work officially for the first 3-4 years, she has a different mentality, religion, and interests. She may not get along with her relatives and may not accept something else that is very important for her foreign husband.

I brush that if a relationship with a foreigner has developed, then this is rather an exception. And I really like Kipling's ballad about East and West

Oh, West is West, East is East, they will never meet,
As long as Heaven and Earth remain as God created them.
But there is no West and there is no East, there are no nations, clans and barriers,
When two strong and brave men look into each other's eyes.

West and East will never “get off the ground”, but despite this, two people from different worlds can get closer and find a common language, for example English

And live together, trying to accept differences: borscht from merejmek chorba and lard from lula kebab

And I want to believe that Ashkym and I are somewhat similar to the robber Kamal and the son of the Colonel from Kipling’s ballad. When I start to turn off the music during adhan, and on Sunday he is waiting for me in the church yard. When they don't add red pepper to food because I can't eat spicy food. And when I sit visiting endless Turkish aunties, discussing the weather.

But this does not mean that the East loves the West and the Turks love the Russians.

Although if, as some do, we call love what happens in resort towns every season, then yes. Some Turks manage to out-love everyone who comes to them during the season, they are very hospitable

By the way, I had a commentator who said that in Turkey it is impossible to go outside, everyone immediately starts honking at her, shouting and whistling. I can’t understand, at what point do these screams become something flirtatious for our ladies?
Everyone wants to sell something. Selling anything other than car rims is of course easier for a woman. Men will go wild if they have to do shopping while on vacation.

Try going to any Turkish bazaar. This is what we sell in Russia: "Hello, my name is Natalya, I am an Oriflame consultant". And here they are all shouting, this is the Turkish style of trading. But listen to what they shout to their women. Abla! Sister, they are screaming. Because they respect their women. Older women are addressed as "Auntie" and others as "Sister"

And a merchant will never shout to a Turkish woman, “hey, girl,” because her husband, brothers and uncles will come for him and he won’t be able to shout anything else. And they will honk at a Turkish woman only if she is driving and does not start on time at the traffic light, delaying her lane.

And then there are so many stereotypes about Russians that we are far from the love of the Turks. Beliefs about vodka, bears, wolves and rocket fuel are still alive
Many people have a very vague idea of ​​what Russia is and where it is. For example, almost no one knows that we have the largest country. And that Russia is Siberia too, and not just Moscow. About the Republics, too, almost everyone believes that they are separate, and Russia is separate. And for many, it makes no difference whether it is Russia, Ukraine, or Belarus. Just like for our people, it is a shock that Istanbul is not the capital of Turkey. Now probably fewer people think so, after so many hot news releases

So I am still far from elevating myself, a Russian virgin, above Turkish women and praising myself on forums written in Cyrillic. At least in my environment I would like to get rid of stupid stereotypes about Russia. Well, in my blog - about Turkey. Because people very easily draw conclusions about a country based on one representative.

I talk about Russia - only good things or keep quiet. I don’t know, why do some foreign women come here and this starts: “You have hard-working men here who help with the housework, but ours are lazy. You don’t drink, but here they drink. You love your children so much, but our men abandon their families and don’t pay child support. It’s so beautiful here, but here The city is full of dirt." So that they feel sorry for you and take you in your arms? It seems to me that this does not cause anything in the Turks, except perhaps disgust. But they can conclude that everything is bad there! And this is her homeland. And what is the Motherland, so is the person.

And there are others who come and start the other way around. “You don’t have this, you don’t have that, but we have everything and everything is arranged according to our minds.” Why is this? Turks love their country, it is neither hot nor cold for them here, but just right. And if his overseas bride tells him this, he can also conclude that she will go home and take the children with her. And this is fear for any father, regardless of country.

And of course they ask where is better, in Russia or Turkey. It’s like when you were a child, everyone was asked who you love more, mom or dad.
I answer that these are now my two homes, and I feel good everywhere. Even if I’m allergic to the sun and the water pressure in the shower can’t compare with ours, and I want smoked fish

Of course, it happened several times, my husband’s friends asked to introduce me to Russians. But for example, he saw my friend on Instagram, a concrete girl, not an abstract Russian one, he liked her and wanted to meet her.

And Turkish women ask if I have an older brother. I say that there is, but not about your honor, but for this you will have to go to Siberia.
Of course they like our guys. Tall, with fair skin, and with beautiful eyes (they call any eyes except brown ones beautiful). But this still does not mean that Turkish women love Russians.

What do Turks think about Russians?

Selim Koru is a research fellow at the Turkish Foundation for Economic Policy Research (TEPAV). He is involved in Turkey's economic and foreign policy in Asia and the Middle East. Text: Selim Koru, WarOnTheRocks. Translation: Nikolay Ershov, “Sputnik and Pogrom”

The young man across from me leans back in his chair, stretching. “How many years have passed, and now we shot down the plane.” His eyes widen. “And this, brother, is the Moskof plane!” He peers into the blue sky, smiles, imbued with this thought.

In the Turkish public consciousness, the word “moskof”, which denotes Russians, carries a derogatory connotation, but is not without fear. “Moskof” is not the same as “rum” (Greek): he is a former subject, sometimes bickers, but in general he is more of a whiny younger brother who is not allowed to beat. The Muscovite is not like an Arab either: the Bedouin is treacherous, but lethargic, and therefore no harm comes from him until the malicious Englishman begins to incite him.

No, Moskof has a special place in the pantheon of Turkey’s enemies. He is a big furry beast, a threat to the Turk's home. And at times he attacks us with godless ferocity.

His first bite was in 1783 - then he destroyed the Ottoman fleet and took away the Crimea, where the Tatars, a Muslim and Turkic people, lived. Over the next few centuries, provinces in the Balkans began to break away one after another - often with the support of the Russians.

The Russians saw a historical mission in the capture of Constantinople - not only because they needed an ice-free port in winter, but also because Constantinople - or Constantinople, as they call it - was the historical capital of their religion.

They would have taken it if Britain and France had not intervened. Worried that Russia was becoming too powerful, feeding on pieces of the Ottoman Empire, they supported the Ottomans in the Crimean War in 1853 and barely managed to stop the tsarist army. The slow, painful decline of the Ottoman Empire ultimately had many different causes, but the Turks have not forgotten where it all began.

The First World War gave Moskof the opportunity to finish the job. He began to incite the Armenians - a Christian people oppressed by the Ottomans - to a full-scale uprising. This episode left marks not only on the Turks' opinion of their neighbors, but also on their image of themselves. During World War II, the rivalry was between the Soviet Union and the Turkish Republic. Formally, they found themselves on the same side - Türkiye joined the Allied powers at the end of the war. But after the war ended, Stalin refused to renew the Turkish-Russian non-aggression pact and began breathing down Ankara's back, demanding freer passage for Russia through the Turkish straits, as well as putting forward territorial claims over several provinces in eastern Turkey.

Pressure increased when the Russian fleet staged a show of force in the Black Sea; After this, US President Harry Truman agreed to bring Turkey closer to the Western camp.

The result in 1952 was Turkey's entry into NATO. As Soner Cagaptay writes in his recent article, this allowed Ankara to take a little break from Russian aggression. However, in subsequent decades, Moskof appeared in other guises.

During the Cold War, a leftist intelligentsia emerged in Turkey, heavily influenced by the Soviet experience. One of its famous representatives was the poet Nazym Hikmet, who later emigrated to the USSR. People like Hikmet were opposed by the Society for the Fight against Communism (Komünizimle Mücadele Derneği), founded in 1948 under the motto “Communists to Moscow!” The organization is living evidence of how communism managed to unite nationalists and Islamists under one banner.

After the collapse of the USSR, this was rarely possible. The struggle between left and right lasted a generation, and in the 1970s escalated so much that university campuses became the scene of battles between nationalist "fascists" and communists. Moskof uşağı- “Muscofian lackeys.” In 1980, the army carried out a coup d'état to end this.

The army treated both communists and nationalists harshly. Their political activity was paralyzed for decades. The Islamists, who were not particularly active on the streets, got off relatively lightly and were able to move on. For the generation of Tayyip Erdogan, Abdullah Gül, Bülent Arınç, Beşir Atalay and other young Islamists, there was something akin to the fight against the Muscovite atheist and the fight against the omnipresent secular state: it was perceived first of all as a just cause, and, in addition, deeply close to the spirit of the nation.

The Cold War ultimately brought the Muscovite to his knees. The Turkish right, as it turns out, chose the winning side. The Islamists - by then well organized and financed - assumed a prominent position for the first time in the history of the Republic.

In 1994 they won regional elections, and in 2004 they formed a majority government led by the Justice and Development Party (AKP, in Turkish AKP). Erdogan's AKP government has since won general elections four times.

Coming to power moderated the Islamists' views on the outside world, including their northern neighbor. Economic relations between Turkey and Russia strengthened; Russia has become Turkey's second most important trading partner. Hordes of Russians reappeared in warm-water seaports, but now they paid good money for holidays in the resorts of Marmaris and Antalya. Erdogan has gradually built a close relationship with Putin and distanced himself from his colleagues in the European Union.

As a result, the generation that grew up under the AKP at the beginning of the 2000s heard about “Moscof” only from grumpy grandparents, and only as a joke: “Why are you running around the house like a damn Moskof? Put on a T-shirt!”

But old enmities will not disappear in one generation. It did not escape those who watched closely how the Muscovite sharpened his teeth against his fellow believers in Chechnya, and more recently in the Crimea. Now, on the other side of the Syrian proxy war, this beast is tearing into the Turkmen Muslims. But this time the Turks have an intercessor, proclaiming that centuries of decline are coming to an end.

Erdogan promises a new rise, recalling the Battle of Manzikert and the capture of Constantinople.

“New Turkey,” he said, will regain its rightful role as a leading power in the region. And so Erdogan shot down the Muscovite plane. We all saw the fiery streak in the Levantine sky.

No matter what happens, he can't afford to apologize. This would mean breaking the promise made to tens of millions of people who have never stopped dreaming of empire.

2015-12-12T22:02:42+05:00 Sergey Sinenko Analysis - forecast Blog of Sergei Sinenkoanalysis, history, conflict, Muslims, Russia, Russians, TürkiyeWhat do Turks think about Russians? Selim Koru is a research fellow at the Turkish Foundation for Economic Policy Research (TEPAV). He is involved in Turkey's economic and foreign policy in Asia and the Middle East. Text: Selim Koru, WarOnTheRocks. Translation: Nikolai Ershov, Sputnik and Pogrom The young man across from me leans back in his chair, stretching. “How many years have passed, and now we shot down the plane.” His eyes widen. "And this,...Sergei Sinenko Sergei Sinenko [email protected] Author In the Middle of Russia

Slavic cuisine is widely known throughout the world. The range of dishes of Slavic cuisine is very diverse, and its popularity in Turkey is increasing.
Slavic cuisine is original and unique. No other country in the world has such a wide range of vegetable, meat, fish and other cold appetizers, first and second courses, sweet dishes, and culinary products.

Residents of Turkey treat everything new with great caution, and our cuisine is no exception. Turkey, our dishes amaze with their unusualness, which is worth just okroshka or, for example, borscht. The unusual appearance of our dishes alarms the Turks, but when they try them, they are delighted. Although they do not understand some Slavic dishes and even consider them strange.

What dishes do Turks like, and which ones should Turkish friends and relatives not cook?

Soups and borscht

No other national cuisine offers such a variety of soups. From ancient times to the present day, a rich assortment of first courses and seasoning soups (shchi, borscht, pickles), and hodgepodge has been preserved. There are more than 60 types of cabbage soup alone in Slavic cuisine. The people of Turkey have a real love for our borscht. Many, having tasted real borscht, look for restaurants with Russian cuisine and take friends and relatives there.

But love didn’t work out for the Turks with okroshka. Vegetables drenched in kvass cause great bewilderment among most people - why douse the salad? They also don’t understand cabbage soup, especially traditional sour cabbage soup.

Salads

Slavic salads are a separate topic for discussion; representatives of Turkey who have visited, for example, Russia, consider them some amazing achievement of national cuisine. Turks like many salads. For example, the same Olivier. In Turkey, it can be seen as an ingredient in Turkish fast food, as a cold aperitif in restaurants, etc. The Turks call Olivier “Russian” salad. Externally and even internally it is similar to the original, but still it is not Olivier. But they are clearly not happy with the vinaigrette. What confuses them, first of all, is their appearance. If you still manage to feed it to a Turkish guest, the first thing he will ask will be: “boiled vegetables?”, and then he may wonder why they were chopped so finely. Many residents of Turkey don’t like herring under a fur coat either. This dish, a must for the holiday table in Russia, is almost impossible to get a Turk to try. First of all, because of the presence of “raw” fish in their understanding.

Jellied meat and lard

To the Turkish nation, the very idea of ​​meat jelly seems very strange. It is almost impossible to explain why broth with meat is specially cooled to a jelly-like state. And unfortunately, not many people even dare to try this dish. I think lard is not worth discussing at all. After all, Türkiye is a Muslim country and it is simply a sin for them to eat such an animal as a pig. They consider the pig to be a very dirty animal.

Pickles

The familiar pickles and tomatoes often cause inexplicable delight among Turks. In Turkey, pickles are also very popular, where they are called Turshu and are most often vegetable mixtures in brine.

Yulia Christodulova