Last week there was the traditional annual NATO Summit meeting in Brussels. Prior to this, these meetings did not attract much attention in Turkey, and they were seen as procedural meetings. But this time it was not so. Almost the whole country is locked in this summit.
This summit contained many differences in many aspects. For example, it gave important clues about NATO's next roadmap and its view on China. It is as if the anti-Chinese sentiment, which was chanted by the previous United States President Donald J. Trump as "Make America Great Again", has caused concern in all Western countries, especially the USA. This slogan, which Trump used in his election campaign, was actually an open admission that China is a global power and that the USA is now worried enough to be felt. And yet, while there was a fear or concern of Westernization in the countries of the world, the situation has now begun to reverse and it has become visible that Occidentalism or China's increasing influence.
As a matter of fact, it has become obvious that China makes itself felt all over the world, first economically and then culturally, through the Confucius Institutes. As an indication of these concerns, it has become an inevitable fact that one of the main topics of NATO meetings is China. If NATO is a defense cooperation pact, its sensitivity to threats against it can be understood in this respect. But if the issue of taking defensive measures against China has been discussed more in every meeting since 2019, this is also an indication that wars have changed form in the world. A similar process has been experienced in industrial production, and while the production itself is shifted to third world countries, information and technology production continues in the West. While conventional wars are left to developing or underdeveloped countries, economic and cultural wars continue between the West and China.
As expected, at the last NATO Summit, China was discussed a lot in the meetings and the spread of the Kovid-19 virus from China, Huawei company's entry into the European technological infrastructure, China's gains with the Belt-Road project, and even the operation of some ports by China. Many topics such as military consequences were discussed. It seems that NATO member countries have realized that they are facing an economic war rather than a physical war, and they have left the conventional gun-gun wars to other countries, so to speak.
On the other hand, we have to say that the NATO Summit has been mentioned almost every day in our country since the EU Leaders' Summit in March and the phone call with Joe Biden on April 23, and it occupies the public opinion more than all the other member states combined. Because the night before the commemoration day of the so-called Armenian genocide allegations, newly elected President of the USA Joe Biden called our President by phone and said that he would use the term "genocide" on the day of April 24, which has been passed off as a "great disaster or pain" for the last century. It was also agreed in this phone call that the two leaders would meet tete-a-tete at the NATO summit on 14 June. Since then, the whole country has focused on this date and meeting, and almost everyone has explained their expectations. As a matter of fact, when Mr. President was on his way to Brussels, he stated that he would express the problems between us and the United States at the meeting. The change in attitude of Turkey, which is no longer able to raise its voice as before due to the volatility in the exchange rates and the economic problems severely damaged due to Kovid-19, and even tries to invite foreign investors at every opportunity, stood out at this summit. President Erdoğan took a very soft stance towards all the leaders he met and emphasized the political negotiations. The foreign press has always drawn attention to this issue in this last trip abroad, as the world public has known for a long time that Mr. President did not have enough power in his hands, even if he did not have enough power. He even wished that they could call each other directly, using a very soft tone, even about the borders of Greece and the Eastern Mediterranean.
The meeting with the President of the USA was the most important event of the summit for us and the statements to be made afterwards were the most curious subject. Of course, in a meeting where two heads of state met, almost all problems would be mutually negotiated, and this meeting could not be expected to be the scene of heated discussions. It would be mentioned that the meeting of both leaders was positive and that the two NATO member countries came together within the framework of strategic partnership and friendship. It was not even properly explained whether the subjects we were most curious about, such as the S-400 defense missiles, the fate of the F-35 aircraft, the support of terrorist organizations in Syria and the so-called Armenian genocide were discussed. The only thing left is the existence of a NATO force in Afghanistan, which occupies the Turkish public opinion these days. As it is known, the US has a military presence in this country, especially after the attacks on the Twin Towers on September 11, 2001, and the newly elected president is making plans to withdraw his soldiers from this country. It was also announced to the public by President Biden that Turkish soldiers would be sent instead of US soldiers. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, on the other hand, is still looking for a bargaining opportunity on Afghanistan. First of all, it tries to include Hungary and Pakistan in the said protection force, emphasizing the demands of "diplomatic, logistical and financial support" from the West, more precisely from the USA. The issue of sending and keeping soldiers can be understood as if, as I mentioned at the beginning, according to the new strategy, "hot conflict areas" are delegated to other countries and more important issues are left to the "greats". This demand can also be interpreted as a test of Turkey's loyalty to NATO, the West and the USA, and "show yourself". Of course, protecting the military presence of a state that is not alien to culture in a Muslim country, Kabul Airport and other strategic transportation points, may be important for us because of our historical ties. However, it should not be accepted that it is imposed on us as a test of loyalty and even from now on to show obedience. Attention should be paid to the call of the Taliban, Turkey and all foreign elements, whose active presence in Afghanistan is known by everyone, and with which many countries, including the USA, hold talks and negotiations to leave Afghanistan. Until this time, the fact that the Turkish soldiers carried out more training activities in Afghanistan and did not engage in operations like other combat forces had a positive effect on the Afghan people. Of course, historical ties had a great influence on this. Moreover, Kabul Airport is not just an airport. It is the heart of Afghanistan and almost the most important gateway to the whole world. In addition, the perspective of former Foreign Minister Hikmet Çetin, who served on behalf of NATO in Afghanistan between 2003 and 2006, is also important. Mr. Çetin stated that this situation "may make Turkey an occupier, and this would be a much more appropriate step if invited by the Afghan Government."
As a result, although resolving the problems with the USA in return for NATO's land clearing mission seems like a smooth strategy on paper, it is not very possible to expect it to be so in practice. In addition, while NATO's prominent military structure is transforming into an eco-political plane, it should not go unnoticed that it sees Turkey as limited to hot war and conflict areas, just like in Korea. The comment of world-renowned speculator George Soros, "Turkey's biggest export item is the army", should not be forgotten. It should not be concluded that Turkey should stay away from foreign operations militarily. Of course, it would be right to be in the countries and regions where our soldiers should be located according to their own will and priorities. However, it is important to make a healthy decision to think about the decision to stay there, not once, but ten times, at the request of the USA, whose reputation has fallen to zero in the name of others, especially in the eyes of the people of Afghanistan. Being a security guard of the new Cold War era will not protect Turkey's interests, and it should not be forgotten that such a role has been assigned to keep it away from new developments.