ERDOGAN AND NEO-OTTOMANISM!
Elias Harfoush
Dar Al-Hayat
D/02-2009/Article-20090203-3c9e6403-c0a8-10ed-00c4 -74981e6e01de/story.html
Jan 3 2009
Lebanon
Nowadays, everything in this region seems inspired by history. The term
"Neo-Ottomanism," which marks the rule of the Justice and Development
Party in Ankara (represented by President Abdullah Gul and Prime
Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan), perfectly illustrates this with the
theatrical storming out of Erdogan from the Davos Forum. He passed
Amr Moussa and Shimon Peres while his wife Amina was crying outside,
calling Peres a "liar."
Such stances towards Israel prompted several pundits in Turkey to open
history books and evoke the stances of Sultan Abdulhamid II towards the
Zionist project, when Theodor Herzl offered him financial compensation
for the debts of the Ottoman Empire in return for allowing the Jews
of Europe to enter Palestine. According to historians, Abdulhamid’s
reply was as follows: Palestine does not belong to me but rather to
its people; you’ll control it once you break up the Empire…
The rest of the story is well-known. The struggle that followed the
Empire’s demise between the national Arab project and the modern Turkey
project led by Ataturk, prevailed over the relations of Arabs when
they had a national project and of Turks before the current Islamic
phase. This struggle faded away at times and appeared in the open
at others, until the new phase of rapprochement between Erdogan’s
government, the region’s countries and their Islamic movements. Such
phase restored Turkey’s regional weight as a State capable of playing
the role of mediator thanks to the trust placed in the ruling Islamic
party by Arab circles – including the defiance camp. This was also
aided by the relation between Ankara and Tel Aviv, which goes beyond
anything that exists between Israel and Egypt or Jordan – the two
bordering Arab countries with which it has diplomatic relations.
Turkey took advantage of this role to regain its influence in the
region; it was able to walk on a thin line. It is the only NATO country
that welcomes Hamas politburo chief Khalid Meshaal, even though his
movement is dubbed "terrorist" by Europeans and Americans. At the same
time, its army has solid military ties with Israel, in addition to
political and intelligence relations. This has allowed Turkey to gain
Israel’s trust, despite the known Islamic trends of its ruling party.
It is this trust that enabled Ankara to restore contacts – albeit
indirect – between Syria and Israel, and to be a perpetual participant
in the meetings and deliberations of regional leaders, as a party able
to "market" their positions before the Israeli party. Moreover, its
participation in the international forces in South Lebanon eliminated
a substantial obstacle to the formation of these forces after the
July 2006 war.
The recent declarations of Israeli officials – including Shimon
Peres and Tsipi Livni – give the impression that Erdogan’s latest
move in Davos will leave a long-term impact on Turkey’s regional
role. Livni accuses Turkey of being among the few countries in the
region that do not understand that Hamas has become a problem in the
Middle East. According to her, Turkey is also the only country in the
region that does not grasp the danger of the Iranian nuclear weapons
and the necessity of taking the needed measures to prevent Iran from
obtaining a nuclear bomb.
Erdogan’s concerns might be more domestic than regional, particularly
in light of the upcoming elections. After his "triumphant" return from
Davos, he assured that he will "not let anyone offend Turkey’s honor
and dignity." He might have succeeded in doing that, in light of the
crowds that lined up at the Istanbul Ataturk International Airport to
welcome him back. And yet, a number of Turkish media outlets pointed
out that Erdogan ruined his country’s role and its ability to take
part in solutions likely to ease the pains and conflicts of the
future more than immediate reactions do. Watan newspaper described
the Prime Minister’s reaction as "scandalous," stating that he harmed
the country’s role as a mediator in regional conflicts. According to
Sabah newspaper, the whole world was able to see that Turkey has a
Prime Minister who cannot control his temper!
As expected, most Arabs welcomed Erdogan’s "victory" in Davos. However,
this Arab support will not help Turkey much when it faces the pressures
of the Jewish lobby in the US Congress regarding the "massacres"
against Armenians, the difficult relations with the European Union,
or its threatened regional role.