A simple question for Turkey
Some in Greece argue that it would be best for us if Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s hegemony were to continue rather than he be dethroned. As he is damaging Turkey domestically and in its relations with allies and foes, this benefits Greece, they claim. Others note that the Turkish opposition parties have always maintained a hard nationalistic line, so the threats against Greece and Cyprus will continue – but now from a government that will seek to no longer be at odds with powerful allies. Some even feel a kind of “familiarity” with the Turkish president, because, as an autocrat, he creates the impression among friend and foe that they know him, that there is room for some deal to be made at the “personal” level. They ignore ample proof that he does only what he believes will benefit him.
It is dangerous to underestimate the damage that Erdogan caused in Greek-Turkish relations over the past years
It is dangerous to underestimate the damage that Erdogan caused in Greek-Turkish relations over the past years, as his acts led towards an ever closer relationship between diplomatic brinkmanship and military adventurism. His domestic rivals may persist with a hard line on relations with Greece and Cyprus, but a new government’s need to restore stability in the economy and to normalize relations with the United States and the European Union may be an opportunity for an improvement in ties between Ankara and Athens and Nicosia.
In any case, Erdogan is not “better than the others.” Converting Hagia Sophia from a museum into a mosque, the repeated military threats (“We will come one night”), the Turkish-Libyan “memorandum,” the questioning of the Lausanne Treaty, and the exploitation of migrants and refugees poisoned relations between Greeks and Turks for many years to come. Erdogan adopted the policies of the most extreme nationalists and turbocharged them with Islamic populism, creating the inflammable cocktail which threatens his nation, ours and several others.
It is a mistake to judge developments in Turkey within the context of what we believe benefits Greece in the short term. Because a Turkey that strives for democratic reform, which seeks closer relations with the EU faces a simple question: Will it improve relations with other countries or will it remain stuck in the quagmire of Erdogan’s fantasies and autocracy?
