Bahçeli’s proposal for a China and Russia alliance is a complicated matter

MHP leader Devlet Bahçeli made a significant move following Israel’s attack on Qatar with US approval, proposing a “Turkey, Russia, China alliance,” which he dubbed TRC, against the US and Israel. The subject is quite complicated.

The sudden moves made by Devlet Bahçeli at moments when no one expects them deeply affect Turkish politics and the economy. After the 2001 crisis, economic indicators showed that the recovery had begun. The recovery from the crisis had started, but its reflections on the welfare of society were not yet felt. At that very stage, while the government still had time, the election was held in November 2002 following the call for early elections by Devlet Bahçeli as a government partner. At the point we have reached today, Turkey’s political, social, and economic structure, including its regime, has changed in a negative direction.

While Bahçeli directed the most ruthless criticisms at the AKP and Erdoğan, he became Erdoğan’s most important supporter. While he once threw a noose from the podiums demanding that Apo be hanged, he later called on Apo to make a speech in Parliament, initiating the Kurdish opening process, the outcome of which remains unclear.

Since its establishment, the MHP has been defined as a party that defends the North Atlantic alliance. The North Atlantic Alliance is also a system that defends the interests of the US. Like his other moves, Bahçeli’s call for an alliance with China and Russia, presented as an alternative to the North Atlantic Alliance, surprised me just as it did most people.

Meanwhile, we learned from reports in the US and Turkish press that Erdoğan will meet with Trump on September 25. It is said that large-scale passenger and fighter jet purchases will be made. Therefore, the situation has become even more complicated.

Trump Jr. arrived in secret. He most likely conveyed the wishes of his father, Trump. He said, “If you accept, my father will give you an appointment at the White House.” Since the message came through his son rather than through diplomats, the matter may not be limited to just aircraft purchases.

Whether Bahçeli has learned something and is trying to strengthen Erdoğan’s hand against Trump with the Turkey-China-Russia alliance proposal, or whether it is a case of “look at the juggler”—a distraction to prepare another scenario under US control—we cannot know.

Many retired Admirals and Generals I know, talk to, and whose writings I follow also state that the US poses a major threat to Turkey and that the world of the future is in Asia, and they suggest forming an alliance with China and Russia.

I am among those who believe that the counter-revolution in Turkey was strengthened by the rapprochement that began with the US in 1947. Turkey’s inclusion in the Truman Doctrine and the Marshall Plan, its abandonment of planned industrialization with its own resources, the removal of education from being national and handing it over to the American Fulbright Commission, and full membership in NATO constitute the period when American Imperialism established itself in Turkey between 1945 and 1952, and these are the most important moves of the Counter-Revolution.

In the 1945-1952 period, the independent character of Gazi Mustafa Kemal Atatürk in economy and foreign policy was abandoned. The Atatürk-Lenin friendship that began during the War of Independence and the Turkey-Soviet Union relations during Turkey’s industrialization drive, which lasted until before the Second World War, were cast aside. Soviet Russia suddenly became Turkey’s greatest threat and enemy. Here, Stalin’s demand for territory and rights over the Straits from Turkey during World War II, citing Turkey’s non-participation in the war, also played a role, as much as US imperialism. However, even though the Soviet Union announced to the UN on May 30, 1953, after Stalin’s death, that they had abandoned these demands, the Soviet Union and Russia continued to be seen as external threats and enemies due to the NATO alliance.

On the other hand, Turkey has become very tightly linked and dependent on the US economically, politically, and militarily since the Second World War. There are also retired soldiers and diplomats who say that such long-standing NATO membership cannot be easily abandoned.

I value friendship with Russia and close, strong relations with China. But when we look at foreign trade, I also know that while Turkey has a surplus in trade with the EU, the large foreign trade deficit is in trade with Russia and China.

I defend the principle of “Peace at Home, Peace in the World” and policies of independence. I think the US is the greatest threat to the Republic of Turkey. I am also aware that the process of changing alliances is not an easy task. Furthermore, when I look at recent economic history, I see that whenever Turkey attempts to deviate from the US route or move closer to the Soviet Union, military coups have occurred. With the experience of all these years, I do not think Devlet Bahçeli is speaking in vain. Let us leave the relationship between the route changes in Turkey and the coups of May 27, 1960, March 12, 1971, and September 12, 1980, for the next article.