It's often said that many of the geo-political problems of the Levant today can be traced back to the aftermath of the Great War when the remaining Powers, exhausted but still striving to fulfil colonial ambitions, carved up the area into newly created countries with newly created borders with newly created rulers in order to retain their own influence in the region. There was no Lebanon as we know it today before 1914; and no Syria; no Palestine either; and no Jordan. For that matter, there was no Iraq or Saudi Arabia either.
As the late Eqyptian diplomat Tahsin Bashir said, in his wonderful observation: "Egypt is the only nation-state in the Middle East; the rest are just tribes with flags".
And for nearly five centuries, those tribes and their lands were ruled from Constantinople, capital of the Ottomans.
After World War One, Turkey damn near ceased to exist. Only the genius of Ataturk and the stoic obstinancy of the Ottoman soldier saved it. It then spent nearly 100 years recovering. And with that recovery has come the gradual re-emergence of the Turk as a big player in Levantine affairs.
With astute diplomatic positioning that the Ottoman's predecessors the Byzantines would have appreciated, Turkey is the nation that can speak to all. It's hosts NATO air bases but has cordial relations with Iran; it was for years one of Israel's few friends in the Moslem world and despite a recent very rocky patch, probably still is and yet until this year, was a friend to Syria too. And it's keen to flex it's muscle when necessary. It sent the Israeli Ambassador home a couple of years ago. It shelled Syria last month. It forced down a Russian plane last week. Now those are the acts of a confident nation.
It was only a few years ago that the big question in Europe was whether Germany would allow an apparently desperate-to-join Turkey into the EU. One can see why at the time Turkey wasn't welcomed joyfully - social repression and human rights abuses abounded then and many persist today - e.g. there's a free press in Turkey but try accessing YouTube while you're there; also reports of discrimination against minorities such as Christians are rife; the residue of the virtual war in the East against Turkey's own Kurdish inhabitants persists; and the genocide of the Armenians during the Great War remains denied. But you don't hear about Turkey wanting to join the EU now. One can't imagine they'd want to, given the EU's current torments. And after all, only 3% of Turkey is actually in Europe.
Instead, Turkey is busy nurturing its own, reconstructed for the modern age, Empire of Influence in the Levant. And that influence is growing year on year.
As the late Eqyptian diplomat Tahsin Bashir said, in his wonderful observation: "Egypt is the only nation-state in the Middle East; the rest are just tribes with flags".
And for nearly five centuries, those tribes and their lands were ruled from Constantinople, capital of the Ottomans.
After World War One, Turkey damn near ceased to exist. Only the genius of Ataturk and the stoic obstinancy of the Ottoman soldier saved it. It then spent nearly 100 years recovering. And with that recovery has come the gradual re-emergence of the Turk as a big player in Levantine affairs.
With astute diplomatic positioning that the Ottoman's predecessors the Byzantines would have appreciated, Turkey is the nation that can speak to all. It's hosts NATO air bases but has cordial relations with Iran; it was for years one of Israel's few friends in the Moslem world and despite a recent very rocky patch, probably still is and yet until this year, was a friend to Syria too. And it's keen to flex it's muscle when necessary. It sent the Israeli Ambassador home a couple of years ago. It shelled Syria last month. It forced down a Russian plane last week. Now those are the acts of a confident nation.
It was only a few years ago that the big question in Europe was whether Germany would allow an apparently desperate-to-join Turkey into the EU. One can see why at the time Turkey wasn't welcomed joyfully - social repression and human rights abuses abounded then and many persist today - e.g. there's a free press in Turkey but try accessing YouTube while you're there; also reports of discrimination against minorities such as Christians are rife; the residue of the virtual war in the East against Turkey's own Kurdish inhabitants persists; and the genocide of the Armenians during the Great War remains denied. But you don't hear about Turkey wanting to join the EU now. One can't imagine they'd want to, given the EU's current torments. And after all, only 3% of Turkey is actually in Europe.
Instead, Turkey is busy nurturing its own, reconstructed for the modern age, Empire of Influence in the Levant. And that influence is growing year on year.
This is really interesting. My knowledge of recent Turkish history is woefully poor but who can fail to be mesmerised by the idea of the Ottomans, if not the actual facts. Keep writing this blog, Geoff - it's indeed helping me to keep my eyes wide open! x
ReplyDeleteThanks Nashes - glad you like it!
ReplyDelete