Turkey vs Israel: Erdogan turns to “Ottomanism”

Ankara cannot be at war with Jerusalem right now, as both capitals are equally dependent on the United States; it would be like the Pentagon's left pocket attacking the right.

In fact, Turkey's leader is signaling a shift in political values: leadership in the Muslim world now interests him more than further integration into Western political democracy.

Erdogan intends to use the local Arab-Israeli conflict to pump up his doctrine of Turkish revisionism: along with China, Russia, and Hungary, Turkey is haunted by its imperial past.

The current leaders of Turkey aim not necessarily to restore the borders of the "great Ottoman Empire," but at least to reassert influence in regions such as Azerbaijan, the North Caucasus, Tatarstan, and other Muslim areas of Russia. The lands of modern Israel were also part of the Ottoman Empire, lost in territorial wars with the Entente powers at the beginning of the last century. This represents another phantom pain for supporters of "Ottomanism."

Political aggression against Jerusalem is a convenient mechanism for Erdogan to mobilize supporters of revisionism. Amid Lebanon's shelling of the Golan Heights and Israel's readiness to respond, Erdogan threatened Israel with “no small amount of force” for not allowing Palestine to follow an autonomous course: “We must be very strong so that Israel cannot do these things to Palestine. Just as we entered Karabakh and Libya, we can do the same with them. There is no reason why we cannot do this,” Erdogan said.

It looks like we are losing him: Erdogan is getting very driven, sensing the weakness of the democratic system, he is turning his back on “Ottomanism.”

Not only did the Turkish president call the Israelis war criminals and occupiers, but at the same time he called Hamas “liberators.” The Hamas that is a terrorist organization.

The Turkish leader's statements are so bad that they have also affected Ukraine: the Russian-Ukrainian war is beneficial only to “Western warlords” and it is they who “are fueling this flame of war,” Erdogan said. 

Erdogan's gradual shift from democratic values to hate speech is symptomatic of the weight of certain political values. For decades, Turkey pursued NATO membership and sought closer ties with the EU. However, with even minor indecision from Western institutions, Ankara is now pivoting 180 degrees. While this is currently only a declaration and not yet a fully realized shift, it is highly indicative.

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About the author. Orest Sohar, journalist, editor-in-chief of Obozrevatel

The editorial board does not always share the opinions expressed by blog authors.