President Tayyip Erdoğan and the large Turkish delegation’s visit to New York is unfolding exactly as expected. Before they even set off, I had predicted that Erdoğan would arrive with a large entourage, there would be extravagant spending, Turkish propaganda would be directed at Turks via institutions like Türken, TASC, and SETA, and he would deliver a speech at the UN General Assembly focused on Gaza, appealing to the streets of Turkey and the Islamic world.
And that’s exactly what happened.
Erdoğan, who came to the U.S. for the 79th United Nations General Assembly, gave a speech at the Assembly that was predominantly centered around Gaza. He dedicated about 20 minutes of his speech to Gaza, comparing Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu to Hitler and accusing the world of remaining silent in the face of the massacre in Palestine.
Erdoğan’s speech was broadcast live on all Turkish TV channels, and an intense PR campaign was run online. To give them credit, they have made significant progress in this area. Those who only follow “pool media” and pro-Erdoğan trolls (Aktroller) could easily believe that Erdoğan was taking on the world, that he was the only politician bringing up Gaza, and that world leaders were lining up to congratulate him.
But the reality is quite different!
Erdoğan’s Hypocrisy
In fact, there’s a significant contradiction here. It’s clear that Erdoğan, who is feeling cornered domestically, especially due to trade with Israel, sought to carry out an image repair operation at the UN summit.
Now, let’s talk about the realities…
First, it should be noted that Erdoğan was not the only leader to bring up the Gaza crisis at the UN podium. As far as I could follow from the speeches, both Qatari Emir Thani and South African President Ramaphosa also gave speeches centered on Gaza.
However, the main point to focus on is Erdoğan’s lack of consistent policy or the kind of hypocrisy that would make even Machiavelli envious. Just one year ago, when Erdoğan was in New York for the UN meeting, he had a very “friendly” meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu, whom he now compares to Hitler, at the Turkish House.
In fact, one of the most-discussed topics on social media at the time was how Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan and MIT Chief İbrahim Kalın bent over excessively in front of Netanyahu during that meeting.
These three figures—Erdoğan, Fidan, and Kalın—are the architects of Turkish foreign policy. So, if there is a success or failure, they are the ones to be held accountable.
Unfortunately, since there is no functioning media or opposition, no one is asking this question: “How do you explain calling someone you hosted at the Turkish House and bowed before with respect a year ago ‘Hitler’ today? Isn’t this the epitome of inconsistency?”
Because Netanyahu was the same Netanyahu last year too.
Moreover, while Israel was raining death on Gaza, Israeli jets were flying over Turkey to refuel. The ships of AKP and MHP elites, including Erdoğan’s family, didn’t halt trade with Israel.
The Palestinian Issue as a Tool for Profit
When this scandal was exposed, they denied it, but it became clear that even when they claimed to have stopped, Erdoğan’s family ships were still at Israeli ports. When they couldn’t cover up the scandal, they came up with the lie that it was going to Palestine via Israel.
And what about the disgrace exposed in Sedat Peker’s videos?
While Hakan Fidan was head of the MIT, his son Halid Fidan and his partner Cihan Ekşioğlu bought equipment from Israel for $3 million and sold it to MIT for $50 million.
The list goes on.
But the core issue is this: For Erdoğan and the political Islamists, the Palestinian issue is merely a tool for profit, just like the Rabia symbol and the Muslim Brotherhood (Ikhwan). If you make the Rabia sign for the cameras and shout “My brother Morsi!” into the microphones, but later embrace Sisi, the person you previously called a “coup plotter and murderer,” your policies lose all credibility.
Not to mention that Erdoğan’s notorious flip-flops are not limited to Egypt or Israel. He picked fights with all regional countries, from the UAE to Saudi Arabia, and then embraced them as if nothing happened.
Now he’s once again looking for ways to embrace Syria’s Bashar al-Assad, whom he has insulted as “killer Assad” and had crowds boo in public squares countless times.
In short, there is a complete contradiction between what Erdoğan says for the microphones and what he does in practice. Therefore, it wouldn’t be wrong to describe Erdoğan and Hakan Fidan as “microphone warriors.”
On the other hand, as I explain in detail in this video, Erdoğan and his entourage’s luxury spending was glossed over with the Gaza-themed speech.
No one is talking about Erdoğan’s state jet-brought limousine, the delegation arriving on five planes, the millions of dollars spent on hotels, the trucks plastered with Erdoğan’s ads, the billboards in one of the world’s most expensive squares, or the fact that (aside from leaders met within the context of the UN meetings) all meetings were essentially Turkish propaganda to Turks.
After all, Devlet Bahçeli already called from Turkey to congratulate Erdogan on his UN speech. And once the AKP organizations gather to welcome Erdoğan at the airport, the operation will be complete!
