Erdogan at rift with the West: Lashes out against US over F-35s, attacks Macron and Sweden

It broke out on Sunday Recep Tayyip Erdogan against the USA, of Emmanuel Macron for his relations with Greece, while glorifying his relations with Vladimir Putin. The Turkish president is at rift with the West, after the travel guidelines for Europe and the USA issued by Ankara.

Speaking at a youth gathering of the Justice and Development Party (AKP), the Turkish president said that “Macron is dishonest, practices dishonest politics, goes to the Eastern Mediterranean, reaches out and establishes relations with Greece while ignoring Turkeywhile with Russia and Putin we have an honest policy and an honest relationship between us.” “These words that I say now will be transferred, but I don’t care, I say them clearly” he explained. “France is losing its credibility,” Erdogan said. He added that France is rapidly losing its reputation in Africa, including Mali and Burkina Faso, as reported by SKAI’s Istanbul correspondent Manolis Kostidis.

“The US stance on the F-35 will come at a price”

“For the S-400 they have been pressuring us for a long time not to take them, we took them, then they pressured us to give them elsewhere and we didn’t give them. The Americans promised us the F-35, despite the payment of 1.4 billion dollars they did not give it to us, since you do not give it to us there will be a price” he threatened the USA.

However, as observed by Manolis Kostidis, while the Turkish president referred to the issue of the F-35, which has been closed for the USAabout the F-16 issue, which “burns” Turkey, he said nothing.

Tayyip Erdoğan even hit back at the US, inviting Iran to join a meeting of Turkey, Russia and Syria, saying: “We can even add Iran to it” to achieve regional peace.

“Sweden will be shocked”

“Sweden will be shocked,” the president of Turkey said earlier in a recital of intransigence for the Nordic country’s accession to NATOwhile we enter the final stretch for the Turkish elections.

“On the issue of joining NATO, Turkey may send a completely different message to Finland, and Sweden will be shocked,” Erdogan said.

Regarding the burning of the Koran in Sweden, the Turkish president said: “Did they eliminate Islam by burning our Koran? They just showed how dishonorable they are.” “You will have to extradite the “terrorists” to enter NATO,” he explained.

German press: Turkey is moving away from the West and NATO

On the occasion of the cancellation of President Erdogan’s visit to Berlin, the German press comments on the pre-election scene in Turkey. “Erdogan’s coalition averages around 41%, which is mainly due to chronic bad economic policy and corruption,” notes the Tageszeitung. “Still, after years of fomenting conflict, Erdogan plays, as fate would have it, the role of peacekeeper. After helping to negotiate a grain deal between Russia, Ukraine and the United Nations, Erdogan is now back at the center of the action. A year ago, analysts predicted that Erdogan would surely lose. But in the face of developments and with an awkward opposition that cannot commit to a candidate, doubts are being raised again. Regardless of the polls, and only the permutation of elections for May shows that Erdogan sees victory within a breath’s reach.

As far as NATO issues are concerned, many are sure that Turkey’s future lies within the alliance, a fact that the Turkish government is also aware of. However, Tagesspiegel also expresses the very opposite opinion, according to Deutsche Welle: “There has been an anti-NATO mentality in Turkey for decades. Furthermore, the 2016 coup attempt was a turning point – the army was “purged” en masse of NATO-friendly officers. Meanwhile, Turkey’s leadership is dominated by an anti-NATO faction. […] Finally, with the alliances that Erdogan has made with the so-called Eurasian circles, it is clear that, in order to ensure his political survival and to satisfy the demands of the allies, Turkey must distance itself from the West – and Erdogan is determined to push NATO to the limits of its patience».