NOTNOTHING makes Recep Tayyip Erdogan Day is an opportunity to claim the moral high ground, present himself as the leader of the Muslim world and stick to the West. For almost three months, the war in Gaza has allowed the Turkish president to do just that. At a recent conference, Mr. Erdogan was in his element, attacking Israel for bombing northern Gaza and Western duplicity. “A journalist is killed every day,” he said, referring to the 68 media workers killed in Gaza since the start of the Israeli bombing campaign. “But none of the institutions that have been preaching to us for years about press freedom say a single word.”
This is of course an exaggeration. Human rights watchdogs have criticized Israel for killings of Palestinian civilians and journalists since the start of the war. But in Turkey, the accusations made today by Mr. Erdogan against Western countries in almost every public appearance tend to persist. As Gaza authorities claim the death toll from Israeli bombings has surpassed 20,000, criticism of Western policies and accusations of double standards in Turkey are reaching new heights. Speak not only with officials in Ankara, but also with opposition politicians, dissidents and ordinary Turks, and you will hear that Western governments that have sanctioned Turkey for its disproportionate use of force in the north of the Syria should, but refuse to do so, sanction Israel for having done much worse in that country. Gaza; that those who criticize Turkey for banning anti-government protests lose the moral right to do so when they ban pro-Palestinian marches in their country; And so on.
Similar sentiments were widespread in many parts of the South, even before Gaza. But Turkey is a Muslim country whose human rights record deserves far more attention than most others, due to its membership in the European Union. NATO and his aspirations to join the EU; its relationship with the West is extremely important. Accusations of Western hypocrisy therefore leave a bigger mark than in most other parts of the world. They play into Mr. Erdogan’s hands, reinforcing his argument that Turkey should have no patience for Western values and should chart its own course. They weaken his democratically-minded opponents. And they undermine external attempts to promote human rights.
Turkey’s relations with Europe and America were already strained. The war in Gaza has worsened the damage. Mr. Erdogan continues to defend Hamas, unlike Western leaders, who want nothing to do with the militants responsible for the horrific murder of 1,200 Israelis, or even many Arab strongmen, who cast shame on Israel but quietly hope that the war will spell the end of Hamas. band. Mr Erdogan says Hamas are not terrorists, but “mujahideen”, or holy warriors. The war means his government’s long-standing relationship with the group has been put under the microscope. The group’s leaders in exile, including those based in Turkey, say they had no knowledge of preparations for the October 7 attack. Evidence to the contrary could expose Turkey to accusations of negligence, at best, and complicity, at worst.
Mr. Erdogan’s defense of Hamas has upended Turkey’s nascent rapprochement with Israel and cost him any chance of taking photos with Joe Biden in the near future. Combined with its decision to delay Sweden’s membership in NATOit could also force the US Congress to suspend a proposed sale of F-16 combat aircraft to Turkey. Turkey’s approval is required for Sweden to join the alliance; his outrage at US handling of the war in Gaza added to the risk that his parliament would derail the membership bid altogether.
But the long-term consequences are just as serious. Israel’s bombing campaign in Gaza could make it harder for Western countries to take Turkey to task for its attacks on civilian infrastructure in Syria, where Turkish troops are fighting Kurdish insurgents. Calls for Turkey to condemn Russian war crimes in Ukraine risk failing as America dismisses evidence of Israeli war crimes in Gaza. The perception of Western double standards has already undermined Europe and America’s ability to discuss norms with Turkey, as opposed to just interests. “Before Gaza, it was already quite difficult to talk about human rights because Erdogan is very intolerant of external criticism,” explains a Western diplomat. “Now it will be more and more exponential.”
Gaza does not matter to Turkey in the same way it matters to much of the Arab world. Except for a religious minority who view the conflict as their own, most Turks do not identify with the Palestinians (unlike most Arabs). But the vast majority, including the secular opposition, sympathize with them. According to a recent poll, 76% of Turks side with the Palestinians, compared to only 5% with Israel.
But the conflict is also impacting the declining number of Turks who view their country as part of the Western order. The West’s weight in Turkey is diminishing, because its policies are increasingly at odds with those of Turkey, but also because many Turks feel that Western norms and values are disintegrating under the impact. from countries like Gaza. In a poll released just days before the October 7 massacre, just 12 percent of Turks identified America as a friendly country, compared to 77 percent who considered it an enemy. Support for America and most European countries will certainly be even lower today.
The outside world’s failure to end the fighting in Gaza not only gives Mr. Erdogan the moral high ground he craves, but makes him stronger and even less responsible for his own abuses of power, according to Yigit Aksakoglu, an activist of Turkish civil society in exile. “It’s a race to the bottom,” he said. Before being acquitted, Mr. Aksakoglu spent seven months in prison on trumped-up terrorism charges over his alleged involvement in protests against Mr. Erdogan’s government. “One of the greatest hypocrites of our time accuses Western leaders of hypocrisy,” he said. But most Turks, including Mr. Aksakoglu, agree that these days the hypocrite may be right. “Erdogan is right,” he said. “And for the West, it’s a shame.” ■