Turkey elections: All you need to know about the opposition’s foreign policy
From returning Syrian refugees to visa-free travel to the EU, Kemal Kilicdaroglu has made some bold promises. But what can we really expect?
www.middleeasteye.net
Libya Policy:
- “We will prioritise dialogue and a non-interventionist approach. We will be an honest broker in places like Libya by talking to all sides.”
EU policy:
- Government would uphold European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) judgements, releasing prominent Kurdish politician Selahattin Demirtas and Turkish philanthropist Osman Kavala from prison.
- Under Kilicdaroglu Turkey would no longer pursue “foreign policy adventures”.
- Anti-Terror Law will be amended for visa-free travel in the EU.
Pkk:
- “Our fundamental priority would be core national security issues, such as the terror threat emanating from Syria and Iraq,”
Somalia-Qatar:
- “Why are we in Somalia? There is no reason. Why do we have thousands of soldiers in Qatar? Why are we in Libya, where we have taken a side in a civil war? We will review all of them.”
Syrian refugees:
- Syria policy would largely depend on dialogue with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad
- “Turkey has taken a side in the Syrian civil war, and it will be corrected,” the official said. “We won’t immediately withdraw from Syria, I cannot give a timeline, but we will discuss our conditions and see what happens.”
- “No doubt it will be on a voluntary basis,” the official said. “It will require incentivisation, job opportunities, and rehabilitation. And we will definitely want to share the burden with the EU, US, and UN.”
Russia and the US:
- Opposition officials agree that Ankara should continue this balanced approach by pursuing a position as a mediator.
- “We are against foreign soldiers on our land as much as we are against neoliberalism. We are ready to do whatever is necessary,”
- Turkey would maintain its relations with the US on the basis of equal partnership
- They will strive to re-enter the fifth-generation F-35 fighter jet programme. There will be solutions for the S-400 that NATO members will be satisfied with.
Greece, Cyprus, and Israel:
- As for neighbours Greece and Cyprus, both officials said Turkey would restart “results-oriented” dialogue with Athens.
- “If we cannot reach a resolution with them, we are ready to take everything to court, including maritime delimitation, territorial waters, and airspace,”
- New government would addressto begin continuous UN-brokered talks with the Republic of Cyprus in the south, failed 2017, dialogue in Crans Montana.
- “Our sense about Mavi Marmara is that Israel's monetary payments didn’t reach the families of victims,” the official said of the compensation promised by the Israelis. “We would look into this issue, but it wouldn’t disrupt our relations with Israel.”
- “We are ready to negotiate everything to normalise our relations with neighbours like Israel and Egypt,” the second official added. “We might have to discuss the presence of Hamas and Muslim Brotherhood in Turkey with them.”
- The second official said that a Kilicdaroglu government, for example, would like to deepen its defence industry ties with Israel and Europe, as well as the UK.
Gulf states:
- “We would like to have equal relations with everyone in the region,”
- “We don’t know exactly what promises were made, and what was taken in return,” the first official added. “We will have to see all of them to make our minds up on what will come next.”
Summary
1- CHP will pull out from Libya, Qatar, Azerbaijan, Syria and probably Somalia
2- CHP wants to solve Turkey/Greece Maritime dispute through the international court
3- CHP will re-initiate Cyprus unification
4- CHP will make a deal with Assad (the one who butchers the refugees) based on "
voluntary" return of refugees to Syria
5- CHP will pull out of the Middle East and probanly pull out from the "big boy" race from the region
In other words, Turkey is fucked the moment the CHP takes office
I still remember CHP fans making fun of me when I stated that the CHP will destroy the Mavi Vatan policy and will not be able to return the refugees back..... and now I turn out to be right as always
Oh God, please dont make the CHP win the race