The
Death of Atatürk's Vision
A briefing by Svante E.
Cornell
September 6, 2016
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Svante
E. Cornell, director of the Central Asia-Caucasus Institute & Silk
Road Studies Program at the Johns Hopkins University, briefed the Middle
East Forum in a conference call on August 30, 2016.
Multimedia for this item
Audio Recording
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Summary account by Marilyn Stern, Middle East Forum
Communications Coordinator
The failed July 15 military coup in Turkey brought to a head a
long-standing struggle between President Erdoğan's overtly anti-Western
approach and the alleged pro-Western orientation of the Fethullah Gülen
movement led by the Pennsylvania-based Turkish preacher.
On the face of it, Erdoğan emerged as the coup's undisputed winner
because he survived the challenge and has become more assertive than
ever. Yet the mass purges he unleashed have not only dented his
international standing but have created a void in Turkey's public life
that will make his rule increasingly tenuous. Hence the regime's
conspiracy theories holding Washington culpable for the coup and hence
its Syria intervention as a show of strength and an attempt to restore
national pride.
Turkey is no longer a state the
West can work with to solve the Middle East's daunting problems.
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Similarly, while Ankara's rapprochement with Moscow is in keeping with
its anti-Western tendencies, the pragmatism of the Turkish leadership is
likely to prevent it from breaking with the West. This pragmatism has
also led to the normalization of relations with Israel, a tactical move
to counterweigh Ankara's failed bid for regional leadership, while
persisting in its anti-Semitic and Islamizing policies.
This pragmatic manifestation notwithstanding, Erdoğan's attempt to
consolidate power while flaunting the constitution and the most basic
human rights is setting the stage for a chaotic and unstable Turkey. As
there are no active pro-Western political forces remaining in Ankara, it
is no longer a place that the West can work with to solve the Middle
East's daunting problems. Policies need to be adjusted accordingly.
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