Osman Hamdi Bey’s “The Tortoise Coach” stands as one of the crucial iconic masterpieces from the Ottoman interval.
Over the course of the previous 15 years, Western powers have persistently sought to deliver a couple of change within the Turkish authorities led by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, intensifying their stress. Regardless of these efforts, akin to the coach within the portray, Türkiye has stored coaching the “turtles” slowly and with persistence.
The Western press proposed that the Might vote was “a very powerful election of 2023.” They’ve been discussing the thought for months and targeted on Türkiye. Earlier than the elections, Western media organizations issued direct threats quite than predictions and analyses. Some headlines learn that President Erdoğan needed to go, threatening chaos if in any other case. Some liken Erdoğan to former Ottoman sultans or Russian President Vladimir Putin. Some have gotten extra hostile by threatening Turkish residents residing of their nation and the individuals of Türkiye.
At daybreak on election night time, like The Washington Submit headlines would learn the following day, “Turkish opposition, trailing Erdoğan, confronted onerous post-election truths.” Whereas the ruling Justice and Improvement Social gathering (AK Social gathering) led Individuals’s Alliance left the elections behind victoriously with a snug majority in Parliament, Erdoğan gained with a transparent distinction however a tiny half p.c lacking to keep away from the runoff in two weeks, and the Western media began to U-turn.
The Western press admitted that Erdoğan reached for victory and that Türkiye had a clear election system. Newsweek put a full cease to the dictatorship discussions: “Cease calling Erdoğan a dictator. Dictators don’t go to runoffs!”
In the meantime, Daron Acemoğlu, an American economist of Turkish descent, who’s an Erdoğan critic, identified the rationale for the frustration induced primarily with the assistance of a lot of the pollsters whose predictions had been confounded: It turned out that many people, as soon as once more, underestimated Erdoğan’s political abilities and talent to learn and management the state of affairs.
All eyes on Türkiye
When the worldwide geopolitical balances had been in disarray, and whereas the brand new set of relations was settling, the emergence of the Republic of Türkiye as a regional energy drew the eye of all nations from east to west, from south to north. In order the nation progressed towards the presidential and parliamentary elections, the eyes of the world public had been all on Türkiye.
In fact, there have been causes for this intense curiosity in Türkiye’s election. Whereas NATO was in a direct warfare with Russia over Ukraine, america, England, France and Germany needed to stop Türkiye from pursuing an impartial, versatile and proactive overseas coverage.
Sadly, the leaders of Türkiye’s opposition events did not interpret this grand technique of the main Western powers. All of them supported the notion that Türkiye’s election marketing campaign and the dialogue matters had been purely a matter of home coverage.
The opposition events underrated the infrastructure investments made by the AK Social gathering throughout its 20-year rule. Nevertheless, due to such infrastructure, well being, schooling, transportation and power ecosystems boosted Türkiye to the extent of developed nations. Moreover, Türkiye not too long ago took an enormous step ahead to shut its power deficit with pure fuel and oil discoveries. Regardless of the rhetoric of the opposition events, the voters personally skilled the worth of this success.
Actually, in keeping with the discourse highlighted by the opposition through the election marketing campaign, although the AK Social gathering had achieved nice issues and introduced Türkiye to the extent of developed nations within the areas talked about above, the financial system was going badly, and the nation was hungry. In line with the opposition, megaprojects such because the TCG Anadolu or the domestically produced automobile Togg couldn’t cover the weakened buying energy within the face of rising inflation.
Emergence as a regional energy
The opposition events’ discourse didn’t replicate the state of affairs in Türkiye. On the conclusion of the AK Social gathering’s 20 years in governance, Türkiye has emerged as a regional energy, successfully conveying a powerful message to the worldwide neighborhood via the revitalized Group of Turkic States (OTS).
Türkiye turned a regional competitors of France in Africa, and French colonialism was in peril of being expelled. The Balkans, the place there was a wrestle for affect between Germany and Türkiye, stabilized with the strengthening of Türkiye.
In the meantime, the U.S. took motion to ascertain a second state of Israel in Syria with the assistance of the PKK and began to undermine Türkiye, its NATO ally. The navy operations carried out by Türkiye turned the U.S. plans the other way up there.
When former Ambassador Ünal Çeviköz turned an adviser of important opposition Republican Individuals’s Social gathering (CHP) chief Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, therefore a number one determine within the occasion, he despatched obedience messages to Western powers, particularly the U.S. He promised to assist Armenia within the Azerbaijan-Armenia battle and Greece in escalating stress within the Aegean Sea. He promised that Türkiye would withdraw its troops from Cyprus and oppose Russia within the Ukraine warfare. Nevertheless, with its energetic neutrality stance within the Russian-Ukrainian battle, NATO member Türkiye was utilizing its major weapon, the stability coverage in worldwide politics, of its centuries-old historical past. The impartial and versatile overseas coverage adopted through the 20-year rule of the AK Social gathering was important for Türkiye’s nationwide pursuits and protection.
Because of this overseas coverage, Türkiye secured its unique financial zone by signing a memorandum of understanding with Libya on the delimitation of the maritime jurisdiction areas, therefore succeeding in creating its “Blue Homeland” within the Mediterranean. Because of the sturdy management of President Erdoğan, the Turkish public turned conscious of the regional threats dealing with our nation and that the prudent and constant insurance policies adopted in overseas coverage and the breakthroughs made within the protection trade ensured the emergence of Türkiye as a regional energy.
Western manipulation
Within the face of worldwide propaganda in opposition to Türkiye within the main Western media primarily based on the arguments of the PKK terrorist group and the Gülenist terror group (FETÖ), voters took excellent care of their nation and President Erdoğan.
Whereas the opposition events, which adopted an irrational political discourse, suffered a heavy electoral defeat, the opposition intellectuals and members of the media confirmed that they had been neither conscious of Türkiye’s nationwide pursuits, Türkiye’s sociology, nor the geopolitical sense of President Erdogan’s management.
The individuals of Anatolia, prioritizing Türkiye’s nationwide pursuits, have persistently elected President Erdoğan as their chief, thereby guaranteeing the nation’s stability and safety via their unwavering assist.