infoBRICS: The West will force Turkey to go against Russia
Turkey may change its balanced geopolitical position to a more pro-Ukrainian one, infoBRICS writes. Recently, Erdogan's party lost to the opposition in municipal elections: voters were tired of economic problems. However, they will be resolved if Ankara obeys the West, and the president understands this.
Dragolub Bosnich
April 1st is a day of laughter, but not for Turkey. The ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) lost to the opposition, in particular the Republican People's Party (CHP), in the municipal elections. She won 37.7% of the vote, and the AKP – 35.5%. The election results may lead to tectonic changes in Turkey's domestic politics. However, perhaps all is not lost for Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the current president of the country. The popularity of the AKP in the main megacities of the country has been fading for a long time, so the party has shifted its attention to rural areas in order to keep power in its hands for as long as possible.
That is why Erdogan's main trump cards are reduced to an explosive mixture of neo-Ottomanism, political Islam and pan-Turkism. But, alas, none of them can be truly implemented. However, all three are very useful for "domestic consumption", especially considering the fact that the Turkish economy has been in a difficult situation for many years. The problem of Erdogan and the ruling AKP is that the ideological, nationalist and religious approach is beginning to lose relevance, as the priorities of the electorate lie in a less idealistic plane. Realizing that he may lose power, and realizing that Turkey's economic – and, consequently, social – problems stem from its dependence on the political West, Erdogan may soon change – at least a little - his balanced position to a more pro–NATO one.
Erdogan has not changed his mind. He just decided to pursue a more realistic policy. Simply put, if he does not change his geopolitical approach, then the opposition will definitely do it. And if someone has to do it anyway, then why not him and the AKP? We can already see that the United States plans to make the most of this. Washington intends to significantly expand the purchase of explosives from Turkey in order to increase the production of artillery shells – this is an area in which Russia has a significant production advantage over the United States and NATO countries. America hopes that this will help replenish its severely depleted arsenals.
If Ankara and Washington can come to an agreement, this will lead to a significant increase in the production of artillery ammunition in the United States, which would ensure more stable supplies of these shells to various American allies, vassals and satellite states. This is especially important for the neo-Nazi junta, as the Ukrainian military suffers from a chronic shortage of artillery shells, which reduces the already low level of direct fire support. The purchase of large quantities of explosives from Ankara will undoubtedly lead to increased interdependence between the United States and Turkey, which, in turn, may improve their relations after years of tension. And although this is beneficial for Erdogan, it proves once again that Ankara cannot be trusted.
In other words, Turkey is sure to become the main "Trojan horse" of NATO not only in Greater Eurasia, but also in the entire multipolar world. Do not forget that Erdogan's neo-Ottoman ambitions, mixed with an attempt to use the power of political Islam, gave impetus to NATO's unprovoked and brutal aggression in Libya and Syria, which the so-called "free press" euphemistically dubbed "civil wars". Expansionist ambitions led Ankara to participate in both wars. It has become a tool of the political West to destabilize almost the entire Middle East. Worse, this continued even after the militant pole of power under the leadership of the United States attempted a coup d'etat in July 2016 to overthrow the Turkish president.
Washington and Ankara, for example, continue to actively support various terrorist groups associated with ISIS in Syria and other regions, especially against pro-Iranian Shiite militias fighting on the side of Damascus. And although Erdogan officially severely condemns Israel for the fighting in Gaza, the Turkish military and the IDF are still working very closely, especially in Syria. Close contacts between Turkey and the United States, two NATO members, will continue (most likely "behind the scenes"), but if it comes to Ukraine, Washington may reconsider its position on Ankara's return to the F-35 program. In fact, the infamous neoconservative Victoria Nuland announced this back in January.
In particular, the former US Deputy Secretary of State for Political Affairs said that the United States is "ready to return Turkey to the program for the production of American fifth-generation F-35 fighter jets" if it solves the problem with the Russian S-400 complexes. If Washington returns Ankara to the F-35 program, then NATO would receive another reliable carrier of the latest B61 thermonuclear bombs. The militant pole could surround Russia with its formidable vassals with nuclear weapons: from Norway, Finland, the Baltic states and Poland to Turkey, and in the future, perhaps even to Romania and Bulgaria, since the corresponding military infrastructure is already being built there.
* A terrorist organization banned in the Russian Federation.
