Despite the fact that the international politics of the Eastern Mediterranean concerns us on a political and journalistic level daily, systematic research and study on this topic is very limited, even in Greek-language literature. Analyses on Turkey, energy security, intergovernmental and multilateral cooperation in the region, Greek-Turkish relations, the Cyprus issue, Libya, and many other related issues are often overshadowed by the volume and flow of daily information and journalism. In the absence of a well-founded cognitive framework, the result is that we lose the ability to read the big picture and interpret developments, both at the institutional level and at the level of the media and society. This textbook aims to examine some of the basic dynamics that shape contemporary international politics in the Eastern Mediterranean.

Within this framework, geopolitical trends and changes in the international and regional system, the major aspect of Turkish foreign policy, and regional cooperation networks centered around Cypriot foreign policy and perceptions of security in the region fall. In addition to presenting data and analysis, the purpose is also to recognize certain patterns of competition and cooperation that emerge in the region, as well as to highlight the importance of the Eastern Mediterranean as a "new" sub-region in geopolitics.