The policy the AK Party government pursued for the latest Gaza chaos, which has turned the Middle East into a blood bath again, is apparent. It is a foreign policy stance that is pro-Palestine but does not directly stand against Israel.
While the AK Party government strengthens its pro-Palestine attitude with an Arab countries tour by Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, the most significant move has come from President Erdogan in the non-opposition position. Erdogan has taken the expected step about Sweden’s NATO membership, willed by Western allies, including the U.S. He has kicked off the procedure for the ratification of Sweden’s membership required by the law of the Turkish Republic.
TOWARDS THE HAMAS EQUALS ISIS EQUATION
This move by Ankara to build bridges with the West again underlies the Hamas equals ISIS equation, initiated by Israel in the international arena and officially backed by many Western countries. French President Macron has recently gone so far as to propose a global coalition to fight against Hamas, just like against ISIS.
Ankara seems to have correctly read the tendency for Hamas to be treated the same as ISIS, as it turned out that Hamas members in Turkey were taken out of the country silently in a period when Erdogan sent Sweden’s NATO accession protocol to the parliament for ratification. Even if the AK Party government sources leaked the information that HAMAS militants left Turkey willingly, it wouldn’t be wrong to guess that some suggestions affected this departure, considering the timing.
It is worth adding that Turkey is officially in the coalition to fight against ISIS.
TURKEY CARELESSNESS OF THE U.S.
It is also possible to say that the carelessness of the U.S. about Turkey was also influential in the AK Party government’s pro-Palestine without being anti-Israel policy, despite all contrary statements by the opposition and even Devlet Bahceli, leader of MHP, which partners in the People’s Alliance.
U.S. President Joe Biden, who called many country leaders personally in Europe and the Middle East to discuss the Gaza issue and talked face-to-face with those when he had the opportunity, has never contacted President Erdogan. Moreover, U.S. Secretary of State Blinken, who visited all corners of the Middle East, passed Turkey over during the region tour.
Contradictory statements by the AK Party wing about the fact that Blinken didn’t visit Turkey are salient. Foreign Minister Fidan told a group of reporters why Blinked didn’t visit Turkey with a statement of inconsistent Schedule. However, AK Party spokesman Omer Celik’s statement about the same issue indicates that Blinken’s
failure to come to Turkey is not a scheduling problem but a choice.
Here is what Omer Celik said: “The fact that the U.S. Secretary of State didn’t visit Turkey during the region tour shows the diplomatic weakness. Not visiting Turkey won’t cause the Turkish Republic to lose. It shows how weak those who do that are.”
The fact that the AK Party and its alliance partners will organize a meeting to support Gaza in Istanbul on October 28, just a day before the 100th anniversary of the Turkish Republic, directly relates to the internal affairs. AK Party, which has sent a message to the U.S. and Western NATO allies by clearing the way for Sweden’s NATO membership, and Israel by silently sending Hamas from Turkey, seems to ‘say hi’ to its voters from the Gaza meeting in Istanbul…
