Sisi's 'visit' message: 'The Republic of Türkiye founded by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk...'

Following the visit to Türkiye by Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi—whom President and AKP Chairman Recep Tayyip Erdoğan had previously criticized with very harsh words—the rhetoric of the ruling power has changed.

Karar columnist Taha Akyol, in an article drawing attention to Sisi's X message referencing Atatürk, noted the following:

'THE REPUBLIC OF TÜRKİYE FOUNDED BY ATATÜRK...'

Sisi's X message referencing Atatürk was generally not covered in our press.

Although extensive news coverage was provided on the official Presidential website for two days, this message from Sisi was not included.

Sisi's message in Arabic was as follows:

“We have had strong political ties between our two countries since the beginning of the Republic of Türkiye, which was founded by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk.”

Sisi could have said “strong historical ties.” The emphasis on “since Atatürk…” has a special meaning: It excludes the Ottoman period!

WHAT DID ERDOĞAN SAY?

This message from Sisi is very different from our government's concept of “our heartland geography.” More importantly, it is a response to the words Erdoğan said during his time as Prime Minister in his speech at Cairo University on September 30, 2012: “a century of imprisonment and artificial borders are being lifted… a century of separation is coming to an end.”

Whatever Erdoğan's intention may have been, it is possible for a foreigner to derive a “Neo-Ottoman” meaning from these words. However, we live in the age of nation-states, in other words, national states…