Ever since Erdogan came to power, there has been documented evidence of Turkey cynically using Islamist proxies across Syria and Libya. Every Turkish cultural and language center across Europe promotes the Turkish brand of Islam.
One of the strongest backers of ISIS was Turkey, even when it claimed to oppose ISIS. Again, there is documented evidence of this, such as: “By all accounts, foreign fighters from around the globe first traveled to Turkey and then on to Iraq and Syria, forming the backbone and striking power of the Islamic State. In 2013 alone, some 30,000 militants traversed Turkish soil, establishing the so-called jihadi highway, as the country became a conduit for fighters seeking to join the Islamic State.”
Erdogan has promoted and branded himself the savior of all Sunnis. With his thorough Islamisation of Turkey, Erdogan changed the character of the secular republic formed by Kemal Ataturk after the First World War. Erdogan has established hundreds of Islamic schools to replace traditional secular education, stealthily reshaping generations to come. A report from Reuters says, “Erdogan has said one of his goals is to forge a ‘pious generation’ in predominantly Muslim Turkey ‘that will work for the construction of a new civilisation.’ His recent speeches have emphasized Turkey’s Ottoman history and domestic achievements over Western ideas and influences.”
In foreign policy, Erdogan has blackmailed the European Union with flooding refugees, and commanded the Turks settled within EU countries to rise up: “‘Go live in better neighborhoods. Drive the best cars. Live in the best houses,’ President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Friday in the city of Eskisehir, while campaigning for a referendum that would solidify his power. ‘Make not three, but five children. Because you are the future of Europe. That will be the best response to the injustices against you.’”
In the recent Turkish elections, Erdogan used the videos of the New Zealand gunman to promote a sense of injustice against “Christians.” He has invaded Syria and squared off against American allies, the Kurds, and Turkish thugs. Erdogan’s supporters have rioted in the streets of Europe, and even in Washington DC.
It defies logic that a certain section of the European and American commentariat—who are supposedly so determined to preserve the liberal democratic order, and never lose a single chance to rally against Russia, and even traditional socially conservative Eastern European countries like Poland and Hungary—are utterly silent about Turkey. Even if someone agrees there’s growing authoritarianism in sections of European countries, those countries are in no way comparable to Erdogan’s Turkey.
