The Strategic Channel Initiatives of the U.S., Israel, and Turkey: Global Power Competition and Geopolitical Implications

This article examines the strategic roles of sea routes and waterways in the global power struggle. Human-made canals such as the Suez, Panama, and Kiel, located in various parts of the world, have been crucial not only in shaping global trade but also in influencing military and geopolitical strategies. This article specifically explores the potential impact of the Canal Istanbul project on global power balances and how it may influence the strategic calculations of Turkey and international actors. The possibility of the Canal Istanbul Project bypassing the Montreux Convention raises discussions on how it could facilitate US and NATO access to the Black Sea, challenging Russia’s security strategies in the region. The project’s potential to provide easy access for US and NATO forces to the Black Sea is discussed as it may reshape the geopolitical balance in the area. Israel’s plans to build an alternative canal to the Suez Canal, Israel’s (Ben Gurion Project) along with the Panama Canal and Canal Istanbul projects, are analyzed in terms of their effects on the international system. In the context of increasing US influence in the Panama Canal, the potential for the Canal Istanbul and Israel’s canal projects to limit China and Russia’s strategic influence in the region is debated. Additionally, the study assesses how these projects may reshape trade and energy corridors between the Mediterranean, Red Sea, and Black Sea, increasing cooperation opportunities between Turkey, the US, NATO, and Israel. The paper comprehensively examines the transformation of regional and global power balances brought about by these projects and, based on that, explores the changing dynamics of political influence among the three countries; the US, Israel, and Turkey.