Turkey: Our New Frenemy

Finally.  The DC establishment is waking up to the implications of a Turkey who sidelines its secular traditions in favor of an Islamist one.  In an editorial, the WaPo writes:

WESTERN GOVERNMENTS have been right to be concerned about Israel's poor judgment and botched execution in the raid against the Free Gaza flotilla. But they ought to be at least as worried about the Turkish government of Recep Tayyip Erdogan, which since Monday has shown a sympathy toward Islamic militants and a penchant for grotesque demagoguery toward Israel that ought to be unacceptable for a member of NATO...

Mr. Erdogan's crude attempt to exploit the incident comes only a couple of weeks after he joined Brazil's president in linking arms with Mr. Ahmadinejad, whom he is assisting in an effort to block new U.N. sanctions. What's remarkable about his turn toward extremism is that it comes after more than a year of assiduous courting by the Obama administration, which, among other things, has overlooked his antidemocratic behavior at home, helped him combat the Kurdish PKK and catered to Turkish sensitivities about the Armenian genocide. Israel is suffering the consequences of its misjudgments and disregard of U.S. interests. Will Mr. Erdogan's behavior be without cost?

In Foreign Policy mag post titled, "How Do You Say "Frenemy" in Turkish?" Steve Cook writes:

For the first time in its history, Ankara has chosen sides in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, demanding that Israel take steps to ease the blockade of Gaza or risk unspecified "consequences." Well before the recent crisis, the Turks had positioned themselves as thinly veiled advocates for Hamas, which has long been on the U.S. State Department's list of terrorist organizations. In public statements, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has compared Turkey's Islamists and Hamas. Implicit in these declarations is a parallel to Erdogan's own Justice and Development Party, whose predecessors were repeatedly banned from politics.

This parallel is rather odd. Turkey's Islamists always sought to process their grievances peacefully, while the Islamic Resistance Movement -- Hamas's actual name -- has a history of violence. Ankara's warm embrace of Hamas has not only angered the Israelis, but other U.S. regional allies including Egypt, the Palestinian Authority, and Saudi Arabia.

Cook plays down the Islamist resurgence in Turkey by pointing out Turkey's foreign minister is not an Islamist, but there's no denying these changes surrounding Turkey's foreign policy came about after Erdogran's solidification of control over the government after he purged dissent from the secular Turkish military. Greg Sheridan notes the changes in Turkish society since the AKP has gained power:

But Turkish society was not immune to the currents of Islamisation and extremism running through the Muslim world. In 2002 it elected a seemingly moderate Islamist government, led by Recep Erdogan.

A few years ago I spent some time in Turkey and, like most new visitors, was entranced by the beauty of Istanbul, the vigorous diversity of Turkish society and its robust democratic debate.

But many of the secular Turks I met in Istanbul were deeply worried about the long-term intentions of their government, which they believed wanted to Islamise Turkish society but was moving cautiously and slowly because of the power of the military.

In the past year or so more than 200 Turkish military officers have been jailed on the most preposterous conspiracy charges, allegedly for plotting a coup. Like many Muslim societies, Turkey is always rife with conspiracy theories. When I was in Turkey the bestselling novel there was called Metal Firtina and concerned a US military invasion of Turkey. Many of the secular Turks who denounced their own government to me also told me they thought the Firtina scenario quite plausible, even realistic.

Similarly, I visited several city campuses in Istanbul, where smart young people, the sons and daughters of affluence and secularism, formed the student body. But the virulence of the anti-Israel propaganda was astonishing. On one campus there was a display explaining how Israeli tanks, when they entered Palestinian towns, strapped Palestinian children on to the front of the tanks so Palestinian fighters would not fire on them. Needless to say, this is completely nuts.

Robert Pollock has also relayed this exchange with the Turkish PM, who refused to condemn the popular movies in Turkey showing Americans killing Iraqis for organ harvesting.  The rise in anti-Americanism and anti-semitism in Turkish society is very worrying. Also noteworthy, is the reports that the Turkish government backed the NGO known as Foundation for Human Rights and Freedoms and Humanitarian Relief (it's Turkish acronym is IHH), whose ties to terrorist groups are currently under scrutiny.


Turkey is a NATO ally to the US and increasingly assertive power in the region.  It provides a natural check to Iranian hegemonic ambitions, has good relations with other Arab nations, and can be an important facilitator in MidEast peace talks.  We need to maintain good relations with Turkey, but we must also to the extent possible, conduct relations in a way that does not empower Islamic extremism. We can start by no longer remaining silent on Turkey's human rights hypocrisy.