Neo-Ottomanism is a Turkish

Turkey

Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...

 political ideology that in its broadest sense, promotes greater engagement with areas formerly under the Ottoman Empire

Ottoman Empire

The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...

.
The word was theorized by the Greeks after Turkey landed troops in Cyprus

Turkish invasion of Cyprus

The Turkish invasion of Cyprus, launched on 20 July 1974, was a Turkish military invasion in response to a Greek military junta backed coup in Cyprus...

 in 1974.

It has been used to describe Turkish foreign policy

Foreign policy

A country's foreign policy, also called the foreign relations policy, consists of self-interest strategies chosen by the state to safeguard its national interests and to achieve its goals within international relations milieu. The approaches are strategically employed to interact with other countries...

 under the Justice and Development Party

Justice and Development Party (Turkey)

The Justice and Development Party , abbreviated JDP in English and AK PARTİ or AKP in Turkish, is a centre-right political party in Turkey. The party is the largest in Turkey, with 327 members of parliament...

. Neo-Ottomanism is a dramatic shift from the traditional Turkish foreign policy of the Kemalist ideology. The shift in the Turkish foreign policy under Turgut Özal

Turgut Özal

Halil Turgut Özal was Prime Minister of Turkey and President of Turkey . As Prime Minister, he transformed the economy of Turkey by paving the way for the privatization of many state enterprises.-Early life and career:...

's government can be described as the first step of Neo-Ottomanism.
The Ottoman Empire

Ottoman Empire

The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...

, was a great power which, at its peak, controlled the Balkans

Balkans

The Balkans is a geopolitical and cultural region of southeastern Europe...

, most of the modern-day Middle East

Middle East

The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...

, and most of North Africa

North Africa

North Africa or Northern Africa is the northernmost region of the African continent, linked by the Sahara to Sub-Saharan Africa. Geopolitically, the United Nations definition of Northern Africa includes eight countries or territories; Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, South Sudan, Sudan, Tunisia, and...

. Neo-Ottomanism policy encourages increased engagement in these regions as part of Turkey’s growing regional influence. Turkey uses its soft power to achieve its goals. This foreign policy contributed to an improvement in Turkey's relations with its neighbors, particularly with Iraq, Iran and Syria

Syria–Turkey relations

Syrian–Turkish relations have long been strained, even though Turkey shares its longest common border with Syria; various geographic and historical links also tie the two neighboring states together....

. However, the relations of Turkey with its traditional ally, Israel was strained especially following the Gaza flotilla raid

Gaza flotilla raid

The Gaza flotilla raid was a military operation by Israel against six ships of the "Gaza Freedom Flotilla" on 31 May 2010 in international waters of the Mediterranean Sea...

. Foreign minister Ahmet Davutoğlu

Ahmet Davutoglu

Professor Ahmet Davutoğlu is a Turkish political scientist, an academic and an ambassador. On May 1, 2009, he was named Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkey after being the chief advisor to the Prime Minister of Republic of Turkey.-Life and career:...

, is opposed to the use of this term to describe the foreign policy of Turkey under the Justice and Development Party government. The new foreign policy has started a debate on Western media whether Turkey is undergoing an axis shift, meaning Turkey is drifting away from the transatlantic system and heading towards the Middle East.
President of Turkey, Abdullah Gül

Abdullah Gül

Dr. Abdullah Gül, GCB is the 11th and current President of the Republic of Turkey, serving in that office since 28 August 2007. He previously served for four months as Prime Minister from 2002-03, and as Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2003-07....

 dismissed the claims that Turkey has shifted its foreign policy axis.

Turkey propagates Neo-Ottomanism in Albania

Albania

Albania , officially known as the Republic of Albania , is a country in Southeastern Europe, in the Balkans region. It is bordered by Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo to the northeast, the Republic of Macedonia to the east and Greece to the south and southeast. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea...

, Kosovo

Republic of Kosovo

Kosovo , officially the Republic of Kosovo is a partially recognised state and a disputed territory in the Balkans...

, Bosnia and Herzegovina

Bosnia and Herzegovina

Bosnia and Herzegovina , sometimes called Bosnia-Herzegovina or simply Bosnia, is a country in Southern Europe, on the Balkan Peninsula. Bordered by Croatia to the north, west and south, Serbia to the east, and Montenegro to the southeast, Bosnia and Herzegovina is almost landlocked, except for the...

and other former country of Ottoman Empire.