ERDOGAN DREAMS OF BEING THE NEW ATATURK

Amidst Mideast power upheaval, Turkey emerges as a threat to US and Israel

Turkey's president supported the rebels who overthrew Syria's Bashar Assad and has long supported Hamas, even hosting its leadership. 

 

By James Sinkinson

 

JNS

Dec 31, 2024

 

Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.

With the overthrow of Syria’s government, Turkey, under Islamist President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, is set to replace Iran as the Middle East’s new chief belligerent. As such, it presents a growing threat to Israel and U.S. interests in the region.

Yet, unlike the paper tiger Iran has turned out to be, Turkey is strong economically, militarily and, as a NATO member, politically. Erdoğan also has ambitious designs to expand Turkey’s power and will likely prove one of the West’s greatest challenges in the coming months and years.

Whereas Turkey was once a staunch ally of Israel and the West, Erdoğan has taken it on a reckless path of Islamization and imperialism. He seems to be aiming to reburnish the Ottoman Empire’s glory, in which Turkey ruled the Middle East and North Africa for centuries, including what is now Israel.

Though embedded in NATO, Turkey is technically still an ally of the West, yet many of its actions betray that relationship. For starters, Turkey has seized about 3,500 square miles of Syrian territory, about 15% of the country, a bona fide occupation. Yet, the media, most Western nations and the United Nations are silent on this illegal land seizure.

Instead, world attention has focused on Israel’s presence in a tiny buffer zone separating it from Syria. Israel took this temporary measure after Syria’s recent coup, with the aim of preserving its 1974 disengagement agreement with Syria following the Yom Kippur War, which was an act of aggression on Syria’s part.

Turkey, on the other hand, harms U.S. interests in Syria by attacking American-backed Kurdish forces. What’s more, Erdoğan’s government is the main supporter of Islamist rebels who recently overthrew the regime of Syrian President Bashar Assad. Turkey also plays host to Hamas leadership, and Erdogan has long supported the Palestinian terrorist group.

Turkey’s presence in Syria could potentially be dangerous for Israel should Erdoğan use his Islamist allies in the country to attack the Jewish state. The Turkish president has also consistently made inflammatory remarks regarding Israel. He’s even threatened to invade the Jewish state.

In short, Turkey can no longer be treated as an ally of the West. It is an enemy and should be treated as such with caution, utmost suspicion, and, depending on Erdoğan’s behavior, punishment.

Turkey occupies Syrian territory in violation of international law. Turkish-backed forces control a wide swath of territory adjacent to the Turkish-Syrian border. This is a genuine occupation of a foreign state, unlike Israel’s presence in Judea and Samaria.

This occupation has displaced 600,000 people and included the use of ethnic cleansing. In 2018, for example, Turkey’s invasion of Afrin in northwest Syria displaced the town’s Kurdish population and replaced them with Arabs and Turkmen. Ethnic cleansing and forcible transfer are clear violations of international law. But no, the United Nations has not passed any resolutions condemning Turkey or demanding it withdraw its forces. Nor have any charges been filed against Turkey before the international courts.

Turkey claims its actions in Syria target terrorists from the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), which is indeed listed as a terror organization by the United States, the United Kingdom and the European Union. However, the Turkish government has for decades also ruthlessly persecuted Turkey’s Kurds, who now number some 25 million, about 20% of the country’s population, and who seek autonomy. It is clear that Erdoğan’s primary aim is to squelch the Kurds’ bid for self-determination wherever it is promoted.

The media ignore Turkey’s belligerence, focusing instead on Israel’s defensive actions. For example, CNN published a headline reading, “Watching with trepidation and glee, Netanyahu orders military to seize Syria buffer zone,” while a Wall Street Journal headline read, “Israel’s expanded perch on Syria’s border puts Damascus in its sights.” No mention is made of Turkey’s occupation of northern Syria or its atrocities against the Kurds because, of course, neither can be blamed on Jews.

Turkey harms American interests in Syria. Turkish forces frequently attack the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), a U.S.-backed militia in Syria’s north and east. The SDF, supported by 2,000 U.S. military personnel in Syria, was instrumental in defeating ISIS and is vital to preventing its resurgence. Recently, Turkish-backed forces seized control of two SDF-held towns and are poised to attack the Kurdish-majority city of Kobani on the Turkish-Syrian border.

 

Erdoğan may use Syria to attack Israel. Turkey is the primary sponsor of the Syrian rebels. The Syrian rebels’ leader, Abu Mohammad al-Julani, formerly of Al-Qaeda, is now the country’s de facto ruler. Videos show his men declaring their intent to march on Jerusalem. In one clip, they announce, “From here to Jerusalem. We’re coming for Jerusalem.” Nevertheless, the Biden administration has decided to trust Julani and his Islamist bunch, even removing the $10 million bounty that the United States had placed on his head.

It is easy to imagine Erdoğan using Syria and its new rulers to attack Israel at some point, though rebel leaders assert they want peace with Israel. Nonetheless, Erdoğan has sufficient leverage and resources to precipitate hostilities against Israel if he finds it advantageous.

Erdoğan persists in belligerence toward Israel. The Turkish strongman is an avid supporter of Hamas, calling them freedom fighters. He has maintained an open relationship with the terrorist group since 2006, supplying them with diplomatic, logistical and even military support. In fact, back in July, Israel foiled a Hamas terrorist attack orchestrated from Turkey, capturing five terrorists who attested to receiving Turkish military training, weaponry and cash. Turkey now hosts Hamas’s leaders after they were expelled from Qatar.

Erdoğan even threatened to invade the Jewish state, saying, “Just as we entered Karabakh (an enclave in Azerbaijan), just as we entered Libya, we might do the same to them (Israel).” He has made similar threats against Greece and Cyprus, the former of which is a member of NATO. Both are also European Union members.

Turkey abandons its staunch pro-Western, pro-Israel and anti-Islamist past. Erdoğan has transformed his country into an ally of Islamists, and he seems determined to restore the caliphate of centuries past at the expense of Israel, the United States and the rest of the Western world.

If Turkey continues to thwart U.S. interests and threaten our allies, then Congress and the president should consider economic sanctions, an increased U.S. military presence and stepped-up diplomatic pressure through NATO allies.

While Israel has fewer options, it must aggressively defend its position and options on the border with Syria, as well as attack any attempts by Iran, Hezbollah or the new Syrian leaders that jeopardize the Jewish state’s security.

 

Originally published by Facts and Logic About the Middle East (FLAME).