Turkey president's Caliphate dreams disrupting global politics

[tipirneni]

• Erdogan, it appears, wants to revive the Ottoman Caliphate by 2023 when Turkey celebrates 100 years of becoming a republic
• By reviving the institution of the Caliphate, Erdogan wants to claim the moral, political, spiritual, and religious leadersip of the world
• A revived Caliphate as an institution is most likely to be symbolic, but it will give Erdogan immense control over Muslims around the globe

Erdogan, it appears, wants to revive the Ottoman Caliphate by 2023 when Turkey celebrates 100 years of becoming a republic. This author has discussed Erdogan's caliphate ambitions in detail in his article written for Haaretz, By reviving the institution of the Caliphate, Erdogan wants to claim the moral, political, spiritual, and religious leadersip of the world. The revived Caliphate as an institution is most likely to be symbolic only. However, it will give Erdogan immense control over Muslims around the globe.

The declining economic might and legitimacy of Saudi Arabia's leadership in West Asia are further whetting the revisionist political ambitions of Erdogan. It is pertinent to mention here that Saudi Arabia, under the rule of the Saud dynasty with its puritan Wahhabi brand of Islam, had wrested the leadership of the Muslim world form Turkey after the First World War with the help of the western powers. Interested readers may refer to this author's article in Haaretz, for a detailed analysis.

Before delving deeper into the South Asia-centric operations, a brief mention of Erdogan's shady world merits a mention. Most of the people in India see him as an elected president of the Turkish Republic, which he is, like any other national head. However, it may baffle their reason to learn that Erdogan is not just a president, but also an aspiring Caliph and even an enthusiastic supporter of dreaded terrorist organisations and Islamist organisations. He is creating deep assets across the globe who can cater to his geostrategic and political interests by investing in radical Islamist groups and terrorist organisations.

Also, it projects his image as a benefactor and leader of the Muslim causes all over the world, among the extremist groups. Erdogan's dubious and murky links with various terrorist organisations such as Hamas, Hezbollah, Al Shabab, Boko Haram, Hayat Tahrir-Al-Sham (Al-Qaeda affiliate in Turkey), and the Islamic State have been brought out by various intelligence agencies time and again. An operative of Turkish Intelligence sent $600, 000 to the Somalian terrorist group, Al Shabab. Turkey's dubious links with the IS have been under debate for quite some time now.

Dutch General Intelligence and Security Service (AVID) has claimed that IS is using Turkey as a strategic base to reorganise threats to Europe. The AVID report also claims that for a long time, Turkey was "a springboard for an unprecedented number of foreign fighters who traveled to Syria from all over the world". Democratic Presidential candidate, Tulsi Gabbard, tweeted that "Erdogan has been helping [IS] and [Al-Qaeda] for years. He has denied this but now is openly using militias of former [IS/Al-Qaeda] terrorists exposing him for what he is: A radical Islamist megalomaniac who wants to establish a caliphate with himself as a caliph-the supreme ruler."

Turkey has supported Syria's Islamist Muslim Brotherhood, which has significant influence among most of the anti-Bashar al-Assad opposition groups like the Free Syrian Army, and terrorist groups like Jahbat-Al-Nusra and Ahrar-al-Sham. Turkey-backed Islamist proxy group, Free Syrian Army, raided Kurdish areas in North-Eastern Syria, killed unarmed civilians and deliberately released IS detainees, as told by two US officials to Foreign Policy.

https://www.firstpost.com/world/rece...s-7695671.html

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Dr. Ahmet S. Yayla, assistant professor of homeland security, former chief of Turkish National Police Counterterrorism and Operations Division and fellow at the Program on Extremism at George Washington University, provided numerous polls to demonstrate how Erdoğan has moved his population, especially through the tightly-controlled state media, towards a dislike and mistrust of the U.S.

“If you look at the surveys, around 8 percent of the Turkish population supports ISIS. Around 10 percent believes that there should be a caliphate,” Dr. Yayla explained. “And now, according to Erdoğan’s media, around 97 percent believes that the United States is the enemy of the Turks. And, independent surveys indicate around 90 percent of the Turks consider the United States as their enemy and this is because Erdoğan’s has been pumping hate against the U.S.”

Other speakers told of how Erdoğan, rather than fighting terror, as he likes to tell the world, actually may have facilitated the passing of tens of thousands of foreign fighters through the Turkish border and how they smuggled thousands of trucks loaded with weapons that reportedly went to ISIS and al Qaeda militants, information verified in a leaked audio recording of the head of the Turkish intelligence approving the transfer of 2,000 trucks to the terrorists.

Then, of course, there is the invasion and occupation of northeastern Syria and its killing and ethnic cleansing of the Kurdish population there. Leaving hundreds dead and hundreds of thousands forcibly displaced, Turkey, a NATO member, entered the sovereign territory of another nation for its own narrow geopolitical interests.

Moreover, Erdoğan uses extremist language to laud his war aims, tweeting in Arabic, “I kiss the foreheads of all the hero members of the Muhammadian army,” before they entered Syria for the battle.

Unfortunately, despite this and many other actions, there remains the belief that Turkey is still a vital U.S. ally in the region. That might have been true a number of years ago, but its authoritarianism, exponentially crude grab at regional power, its cozying up to America’s enemies, attacks on our allies and pivot back towards Neo-Ottomanism, means that Turkey should be placed on the list of opponents, if not enemies.

https://thehill.com/opinion/internat...ot-its-embrace

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