It's finally over!

The government appears to have survived the NATO summit in Ankara—which it had been preparing for months and waiting for with bated breath for days—without any major mishaps.

The leaders of the Western world, diplomats, political representatives of global capital barons, and the bigwigs of the arms lobbies have left the capital; in the corridors of Beştepe, someone is most likely rubbing their hands together and taking a deep breath.

For days, they were giddy with excitement, waiting for Trump to arrive so they could pose for photos hand-in-hand before the cameras.

Indeed, they got more than they wanted; the curtain fell on the global theater stage in the blockaded capital, under the shadow of militarism and billion-dollar arms deals.

For those in power, what mattered was neither the poverty that can no longer be hidden on the streets nor the growing social decay and corruption in the country; the real issue was that one frame of legitimacy to be harvested from across the Atlantic and the "world leader" illusion to be sold domestically.

Let's put on our reading glasses and look at the background of the matter.

The NATO Ankara Summit, held under the vision of "NATO 3.0," brought together leaders, diplomats, and arms industry representatives from 55 countries not for the pursuit of peace, but directly to the table for more armament, increased military budgets, and global hegemony planning.

The decisions previously taken at the Hague Summit were reinforced in Ankara.

With the commitment of allies to increase their defense budgets to 5 percent of their gross domestic product, the groundwork was laid for a wave of global militarism that is certain to influence the world.

New supply agreements exceeding 50 billion dollars, the details of a 70 billion Euro military aid package for Ukraine, and so on...

The decisions taken are no surprise.

The billions of dollars in resources provided will go toward turning the gears of the global defense industry. In other words, they will once again place the burden on the backs of the people—in whichever country it may be—through additional taxes and cuts to social welfare.

In any case, one shouldn't take the rest of it too seriously.

For instance, the emphasis on "free and democratic nations" in the final declaration is, let's say, a bad joke!

The authorized and influential figures of the alliance member countries, as if they had no idea what is happening in Turkey or that the political Islamist government has left not a shred of democracy, the rule of law, or human rights in the country, signed their names under the sentence: “Our unity, solidarity, and collective strength; free and democratic nations continue to be the foundation of peace, security, and prosperity for the one billion citizens in our Alliance.”

Let's just say "shame" to this level of hypocrisy...

Not one of them had the courage to stand up and say, “We signed this, but we know how dire the situation is in Turkey, and our concerns remain.”

Yet, while they were preaching about democracy at the summit, İmamoğlu, the presidential candidate of the CHP—whom Tayyip Erdoğan sees as his greatest political threat—was trying to present his defense in court.

Because his right to defense was restricted, he argued with the court panel, was removed from the courtroom by force by the gendarmerie during the hours the summit was taking place, and a new investigation was launched against him at lightning speed.

On one side, the democracy speeches of Western leaders; on the other, a "host" trying to liquidate his strongest political rival in the corridors of the courthouse...

In short, all these normative claims in the final declaration remained mere fiction.

It is not just the İmamoğlu issue; for example, the security practices in the capital during the summit process also made human rights violations abundantly visible.

The Ankara Governor's Office completely banned outdoor meetings, marches, and the distribution of leaflets in the city throughout the summit.

According to Human Rights Watch data, more than 200 activists, lawyers, and journalists who wanted to protest global armament budgets and security policies were detained as part of counter-terrorism operations.

The joint condemnation statement issued by over 130 intellectuals against these repressive measures did not even matter to the leaders attending the summit.

We once again witnessed the pragmatic, two-faced realpolitik of Western imperialism and NATO.

For instance, while Secretary General Mark Rutte directed a supposedly diplomatic criticism at the institutional regression in Turkey by saying from the podium, "Democracy is more than elections," he immediately continued to praise Turkey's regional military capacity and logistical power.

Where are we to place Rutte's sentences!

What a contradiction...

The most concrete reflection of the realpolitik we are talking about was the open support Trump gave to Tayyip Erdoğan, who is cornered in domestic politics.

The promise to lift CAATSA sanctions... 

The sale of F-35 fighter jets...

We don't need a crystal ball to predict the potential political consequences of this support. Make no mistake, in the run-up to the elections, they will sell his rhetoric praising Tayyip Erdoğan and Turkey's military power as a "diplomatic victory" and a confirmation of global leadership.

A magnificent story to be pushed onto the people of my country from here...

To think otherwise would be naive.

On the other hand, it is certain that the West's open support for Tayyip Erdoğan will completely eliminate the opposition's expectation of international pressure regarding anti-democratic practices.

If only it stopped there!

The fact that global elites, but especially Washington, ignore human rights violations in Turkey or political engineering like the İmamoğlu case will pave the way for the government to continue its domestic suppression policy and the process of liquidating its rivals even more recklessly.

For example, let's not be surprised if they lift the immunity of deputies in Özgür Özel's inner circle and arrest them!

It is worth being honest: Trump's move is a result of the US desire to keep Turkey by its side, both logistically and militarily, in its military escalations in the Middle East. 

Let's underline this with a thick pen so that when we ask in a few days what Turkey gave and what it received from Tayyip Erdoğan in return, this sentence will be in our memory.

We all saw that for NATO, legal erosion in a member country, the disappearance of justice, or the suppression of dissidents through the judiciary are not priority issues.

Yet, in the preamble of the Alliance Treaty, the sentence “The parties are determined to safeguard the freedom, common heritage, and civilization of their peoples, founded on the principles of democracy, individual liberty, and the rule of law” is still there.

The Alliance's priority is for Turkey to remain a military outpost in line with geopolitical interests and to allocate the highest share of its budget to weapons.

In conclusion, we have come to understand that Western allies see no harm in sacrificing the democratic values they themselves proclaim for the sake of continuing their military and strategic partnership.

Let us end our article by stating that those who shamelessly legitimize democratic regression in the country for the sake of military interests by heaping praise on Turkey's regional role are, at the same time, declaring the bankruptcy of the very paradigm they constantly harp on about.