If Tayyip Erdoğan had lost?

“Pray, Tayyip Erdoğan wins, otherwise the region will suffer from many problems.”

This sentence belongs to the Prime Minister of Pakistan Muhammad Shahbaz Sharif. It follows the first round of Turkey’s presidential election, which was inconclusive. It was during those days that the Prime Minister said this to his friend Azim Chaudhary in a tone of concern.

Be it a dear friend like Turkey or any other friendly country, as a friend, its electoral process should in principle be so sensitive that the elections remain peaceful and reflect the true opinion of the people.

It is also true that Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has always been enthusiastic and sincere towards Pakistan and his relations with the Pakistani leadership, including the Sharif family, are warm. For this reason, it is natural to want and worry about their success in the elections, but what is the relationship of this matter with the problems of the region? This question is as important for the people of Turkey as it is for Pakistan and other countries in the region.

The recent elections in Turkey were not just elections, but a cultural phenomenon. Two years ago, a young scholar met Sir N. Dal at the Mohammad Akif Ersoy University in Bardar, a small province of Bardar, Turkey. This serious student of international relations asked me what do you think about our leadership?

I said what I had to say in this regard, but in response; I questioned whether the Turks I spoke to on this subject were very excited or a touch of concern. What is the cause? They said that I can give you the answer to this question at the same time, but wouldn’t it be good that you see some things with your own eyes and come to a decision yourself?

Dinner was over in no time. I wanted to buy something so we both went to the lobby of the hotel first with his fiance then to the shopping area and then to some other places. They said that you will consider the methods of our meeting and prayer. Turkish language is not so foreign to us. After spending two or four days in a place, the traveler starts to understand the conversation. Their colloquial speech has most of the same type of words that we usually use in Urdu or Arabic etc. If there is any difficulty, it is the accent. If you catch the accent, think that more than half of the problem is solved.

In America, people who pass by have a smile on their face and if they are familiar with each other, they even say hello. The same is true of the Turks. Wherever the eyes were closed, they smiled and said some words to each other. Turks speak quickly and have a somewhat slurred accent, so it is often difficult to understand at first listen. I listened carefully to this smile and words of welcome on the words of Sir N. Then I realized that this is a situation like Pakistan, as if we don’t know each other. Salaam Aleek’ is called.

This is a new trend, at least two and a half decades ago, Sir Ann said. People may send greetings to each other in their private life, but in government offices, events and public places, the words ‘Marhaba’ were used avoiding these words. Why was that? In the past, there was a risk that if you were found doing this, the state could brand you as religious and retaliate.
This change is due to Tayyip Erdoğan.

Sir Ann said.

It is not that people don’t say Marhaba anymore, many people do, but the ideological background of those who use such words is different. The salam aleek ones want to preserve their trend and the marhaba ones long for the return of the old trend. It seems to be a cultural and ideological phenomenon that continues in Turkey all the time. In the recent elections, this conflict came to the fore.

This was the cultural aspect of these elections, the extent and depth of which is not difficult to estimate. A political conflict continued in Turkey along side of the civilizational aspect, which is a natural aspect of the civilizational aspect, in which the considerations about Pakistan and the Muslim world are hidden. First mention of India.

The natural love and warmth between Pakistan and Turkey has always been a cause of concern for India, so India has worked tirelessly to build and strengthen its lobby in Turkey. Unconventional diplomacy was used for this purpose. Ashrams were built where influential people of Turkish society were invited and contacts were strengthened through yoga etc. Similarly, festivals like Holi are now being celebrated there regularly. Big billboards of Bollywood actors are also often seen on the streets of Istanbul. How effective have these activities been?

It was estimated a few years ago when India changed the constitution and changed the status of the disputed region of Occupied Kashmir and made it a regular part of India. On this occasion, dialogues were held at the governmental and non-governmental levels in Turkey as well. It was noted on these occasions that some representatives of the upper classes were in favor of neutrality on the Kashmir issue between Pakistan and India, like some Arab countries. In Turkey, this group that has such an opinion is the one that supported Kamal Klichdar Olu in these elections. Kamal Klichdar Olu himself has the same opinion.

During his election campaign, he bluntly announced that he would bring significant changes in foreign policy. He also hinted that Turkey’s direction is more towards the Muslim world, he will turn it back to the West. Apart from Pakistan and India, there is a third side to Turkey’s foreign relations.

This aspect of the country’s foreign policy is related to the emerging new centers of power in the East. President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, despite being an ally of the United States and NATO, has taken a strong interest in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, the largest alliance in the East, and has successfully completed the initial stages of joining it, like Iran.

For the sake of simplicity, it can be said that just as Saudi Arabia has extended the hand of friendship to Iran with the cooperation of China and has prepared to take advantage of the new opportunities emerging in the region, in the same way, Turkey also has its natural interests without affecting its Western relations. Relationships are returning to the East in a more meaningful way.

It is obvious that Turkey has ideological aspects besides economic interests. Now, it would be superfluous to say that the original architect of this policy is the spirited President Erdoğan, but Kamal Klichdar Olu was totally opposed to this policy and he openly talked about withdrawing from it.

In this background, if President Tayyip Erdoğan’s victory in the recent elections has many aspects of satisfaction for Pakistan and the Muslim world, on the other hand, there is a deep wave of satisfaction within Turkey itself in this regard.

A large number of people are satisfied that the results of the recent elections have not only ensured the protection of their cultural and ideological beliefs, but also that it is no longer possible to alienate their homeland from their natural allies and loving friends. will be deprived.