Category: Authors

Israel-Lebanon Agreement and Restructuring in the Eastern Mediterranean

As if the rapid change of balances in the world will lead to the reconciliation of resentments and the re-determination of ranks…

For example, after Israel completed the exploration and extraction of gas in the Karish field, political relations between Lebanon and Israel were positively affected by the certainty that there was gas in the region.

In fact, although there has been no conflict between Lebanon and Israel for years, a ceasefire agreement has not yet been signed. Although the two countries are still technically at war, talks on the designation of adjacent maritime jurisdiction areas have continued, albeit intermittently.

The confirmation of the existence of rich hydrocarbon deposits in the Qana and Karish fields off the southern coast of Lebanon and the northern coast of Israel, and Israel’s physical extraction of natural gas from the Qarish region, have eased tensions between the two countries.

In particular, Lebanon’s years of political and economic crisis have triggered the idea of better relations with Israel.

Although it has no de facto right to the hydrocarbon deposits in the Eastern Mediterranean, the United States, which wants to use it as leverage against rival countries, did not miss the opportunity and entered the dispute between Lebanon and Israel as a mediator in 2020. With the de facto participation of the United Kingdom and France, the parties agreed on 11 October 2022. (The fact that Hezbollah, which has a say in Lebanese politics and people’s lives, is also warm to this issue has positively affected this agreement.)

According to this agreement, which is unique to date, all the rights of the Qarish region will belong to Israel and all the rights of the Qana region will belong to Lebanon. Since a small part of the Qana region falls under Israel’s maritime jurisdiction, the French company Total will extract natural gas from the region. Israel will own a part of the shares of this company. Israel will not receive a share of the natural gas that will come out of the Qana region, but of the profits that Total makes from this region.

Let’s come to Turkey; Turkey’s insistence on the Exclusive Economic Zone determined according to the 1958 and 1960 World Law of the Sea Conferences marked the beginning of a new construction in the Eastern Mediterranean. This development was accelerated by the war in Ukraine and the crisis in Iran.

Since the U.S. has mediated in the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) designation talks between Israel and Lebanon, Russia also wants to take an active role in the EEZ designation talks between Syria and Lebanon.

The involvement of the United States, Russia and Turkey in the restructuring in the Eastern Mediterranean has made the Greek Cypriot Administration of Southern Cyprus (Greek Cypriot Administration – GCA) very nervous.

The fact that the European Union began to struggle with economic and political problems and was dragged to the brink of relegation in the global league weakened the regional power of Greece and the Greek Cypriot Administration. Their alliances with Israel, Egypt, Jordan and Lebanon to strengthen their presence and demands in the Eastern Mediterranean have lost their importance.

The rejection of the EEZ, unilaterally declared by the Greek Cypriot Administration, and the declaration of the Seville Map, which Greece had insidiously prepared, as invalid by the USA and the EU, pushed both Greece and the Greek Cypriot Administration out of the developments in the Eastern Mediterranean and broke their power in the international arena.

Turkey’s continental shelf agreement with Libya and the steps it has taken for the normalization of relations with Israel and Egypt have begun to reveal Turkey’s superiority in the new construction that has started in the Eastern Mediterranean.

In addition to all these, the acceptance of the TRNC as an observer member of the Organization of Turkic States extended the borders of the Organization of Turkic States to the middle of the Eastern Mediterranean. While behind Greece and the Greek Cypriot Administration is the European Union, which has entered a period of decline, behind Turkey and the TRNC is the Organization of Turkic States, whose star has begun to shine again. The balances in the region have changed in favor of Turkey and the TRNC.

This new development began to affect the borders of the exclusive economic zones of the littoral countries in the region and the way of shipment of natural gas to be extracted.

Israel has put on its agenda the sending of the natural gas it has started to extract in the Eastern Mediterranean to the European continent through Turkey. The Greek Cypriot Administration is aware that if it succeeds in extracting natural gas that it can export one day because it is alone and without alternatives in the region, it has to send it through Turkey.

For this reason, GCA started to look for ways to establish relations with Turkey. For now, GCA is trying to extract concessions from Turkey with threats, but GCA knows very well that at the end of the day GCA will have to make concessions himself.

It is certain that the Exclusive Economic Zone border agreement signed by Israel and Lebanon will pave the way for Turkey and the TRNC to conclude Exclusive Economic Zone border agreements with their economic zone neighbors Syria, Lebanon and Israel in the future, and that the Greek Cypriot Administration will eventually have to reach an agreement with the TRNC and recognize the TRNC, albeit under certain conditions.

Prof. Dr. (Civ. Eng.), Assoc. Prof. Dr. (Int. Rel.) Ata ATUN

Dean, Cyprus Science University

December 1, 2022
BBC Whitewashes Azerbaijan’s Crimes By Airing Film Backed by BP & Aliyevs

The openDemocracy.net website published a critical article about BBC’s airing of a two-part propaganda film funded by the UK oil and gas giant British Petroleum (BP) about Azerbaijan. Written by James Dowsett, the article was titled, “BBC accused of ‘whitewashing’ autocratic Azerbaijan in BP-sponsored film.” BP has invested $84 billion in Azerbaijan since 1995 and is the largest foreign corporate investor in Azerbaijan’s oil operations.

The film was titled; ‘Wonders of Azerbaijan,’ leaving no doubt about its propagandistic purpose. It was produced with the backing of the ruling Aliyev family.

Azerbaijan is one of the most corrupt countries in the world. BBC is wrong to promote such a kleptocracy. BP “has long faced criticism from human rights and climate activists for its ties to the ruling Aliyev regime, which has been accused of ‘electoral fraud,’ the silencing of dissenting voices and benefiting disproportionately from Azerbaijan’s oil and gas wealth,” openDemocracy reported.

“BP spent $300,000 on the film, which was made by the UK production company SandStone Global with support from a foundation and a media center run by members of Azerbaijan’s ruling Aliyev family. Broadcaster and historian Bettany Hughes, who co-founded SandStone, presented the film,” openDemocracy wrote.

“Emin Huseynov, an Azerbaijani journalist who fled political persecution in Azerbaijan in 2015, accused the BBC of ‘whitewashing a dictatorship’ over the film,” wrote openDemocracy. Huseynov said BBC was giving “the floor to one of the bloodiest and most corrupt regimes in the world.”

Before its airing in August, BBC promoted the film by promising the viewers that they would discover “how Azerbaijan’s oil wealth enabled the capital Baku to flourish” and “gain the reputation of being the ‘Paris of the East.’”

In the film, Bettany Hughes travelled to Azeri-occupied Shushi, but did not say a single word about the city’s Armenian heritage. “The film also implicitly promoted Azerbaijan’s claims to Shusha [Shushi],” openDemocracy wrote. Azerbaijan has allocated millions of dollars to turn Shushi into its ‘cultural capital.’

A BBC spokesman tried to justify its objectionable transaction by telling openDemocracy that the revenue from airing the Azeri propaganda film “allows us to invest in the BBC’s world-class journalism, which provides independent and impartial news across all topics.” BBC’s ridiculous excuse is akin to a prostitute claiming that she donates to the church the money she makes from prostitution!

To generate additional income, BBC ran during the airing of the film travel ads paid by Azerbaijan’s official tourist board. The “Baku Media Center provided logistics support to SandStone, while the Heydar Aliyev Foundation helped the UK company secure filming permits and access to unique heritage sites,” a SandStone representative told openDemocracy. The Baku Media Center is run by Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev’s youngest daughter, Arzu Aliyeva. The Center works closely with the family-run Heydar Aliyev Foundation.

BP admitted that the propaganda film was its “contribution to Azerbaijan’s global promotion” in partnership with the Heydar Aliyev Foundation. The Foundation is chaired by Ilham Aliyev’s wife Mehriban Aliyeva, who is also the country’s vice president.

OpenDemocracy reported that “the Heydar Aliyev Foundation is tasked with promoting Azerbaijan’s image abroad, including by advancing the government position over Nagorno-Karabakh. But government critics say this work extends to diverting attention from the regime’s relentless crackdown on dissent and its systemic corruption.”

Arzu Geybullayeva, an Azerbaijani journalist living in exile, told openDemocracy: “The [Heydar Aliyev] Foundation was set up by the ruling family to whitewash Azerbaijan’s image. It can by no means be described as independent of the state.”

“The Heydar Aliyev Foundation is leading restoration works in Shusha [Shushi]. Some of these works [are] featured in the BBC program,” reported openDemocracy. Meanwhile, BP is planning a solar power plant in the city of Jabrayil, which Azerbaijan occupied in the 2020 war.

BP’s regional president Gary Jones “took to the stage at the Baku premiere of the film in late September to praise the ‘unwavering support of the [Azerbaijani] government’ for his company and its co-venturers’ operations in the country. Jones also spoke of the ‘joint effort’ that went into creating the documentary. He thanked the Heydar Aliyev Foundation for its support and paid personal homage to the president’s daughter, Arzu Aliyeva, and to the Baku Media Center she heads, ‘for their outstanding technical support’ on the production,” openDemocracy wrote.

Furthermore, “This isn’t the first time BP has collaborated with the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, or that the Foundation has cropped up on the BBC. Last year, BBC StoryWorks… ran a separate tourism-focused campaign for Azerbaijan to mark the 30th anniversary of the country’s independence from the Soviet Union. The campaign included a paid-for advertorial that invited readers to ‘discover more’ about Azerbaijan by following a link to an external website run by the Heydar Aliyev Foundation. The ‘Azerbaijan’ portal claims (among other things) that Azerbaijan’s current president Ilham Aliyev ‘has always focused on ensuring a fuller provision of human rights and freedoms in the country.’ It also contains information about the so-called ‘Armenian problem.’” However, the weblink was deleted after openDemocracy contacted BBC. The link had included scenes from a ‘war park’ in Baku where figures of Armenian soldiers with distorted faces were featured.

BP has signed a cooperation agreement with the Heydar Aliyev Foundation to jointly implement some of its social investment projects. “Previous joint projects have included sponsored films, such as ‘The Last Session’, a 2018 documentary commemorating the birth of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic — the short-lived independent state that was ended by Soviet invasion in 1920. BP spent $320,000 on the project, which was organized by the Baku Media Center. Arzu Aliyeva was credited as the film’s executive producer,” openDemocracy reported.

November 29, 2022
Membership of North Cyprus to Organization of Turkic States

The Cyprus issue, which has been on the table for the last fifty years, did not begin in 1974, as Greek Cypriots and Greeks claimed, and Turkey did not occupy the island. The Greek Cypriots’ and Greeks’ deceptive black propaganda tries to show that Turkey invaded the island of Cyprus in 1974 for no reason, but the reality is far from that. If there is an intention to understand the Cyprus problem, it is necessary to know the facts thoroughly…

Let me postpone telling you about the terror and massacres inflicted on the island of Cyprus by the Greeks between 1950 and 1960 in order to realize the Enosis ideal, and instead summarize the process that began in 1974.

The Republic of Cyprus was founded in 1960 by the “Constituent Communities” of Turkish Cypriots and Greek Cypriots. While Armenians, Maronites, and Latins were classified as minorities in the Constitution, Turkish Cypriots and Greek Cypriots were appointed as governing communities. Because the Greeks outnumbered the Turks, the Turkish Cypriots had veto rights at every stage of administration and decision-making, preventing the Greek Cypriots from managing the island alone with oppressive and restrictive methods through decisions they made on their own, and from annexing the island to Greece.

Throughout the process, Greek Cypriots were deeply troubled by the fact that the constitution granted Turkish Cypriots the right to participate in administration and sovereignty. To be able to rule the island on their own and annex it to Greece as soon as possible, they began efforts to “revoke 13 articles” in the Constitution that granted Turkish Cypriots the right of partnership.

To begin with, they proposed repealing the 13 articles of the Constitution that granted Turkish Cypriots the right to partnership. When Turkish Cypriots rejected this offer, they took it to Turkey, one of the guarantors of the Republic of Cyprus. When Turkey turned down this offer, they decided to change the constitution through armed force and gunpoint.

They planned an armed attack called “Akritas” with the assistance and planning of officers dispatched from Greece to exterminate the Turkish Cypriots in large numbers. On December 21, 1963, they began carrying out massacres by attacking Turkish Cypriots, the majority of whom live in small villages on the island of Cyprus. Greece sent a 20,000-strong Greek Division to the island of Cyprus on January 1, 1964, in violation of international rules, with the goal of contributing to the annihilation of Turkish Cypriots. Turkish Cypriots banded together to defend themselves and tried to repel Greek attacks as much as possible.

As part of the Turkish Cypriot extermination plan, many Turkish villages were burned down, Turkish Cypriots were killed, and their properties, houses, fields, livestock, and grains were confiscated in the first half of 1964. They took a step back with Turkey’s ultimatum after the big attack in 1967, but the social and economic bonding and fears of Turkish Cypriots persisted until 1974.

When relations between Makarios, the President of the Republic of Cyprus, and the Colonels’ Junta, which was in power in Greece, deteriorated, Greece staged a military coup on July 15, 1974, to depose Makarios.

The putschists overthrew the Republic of Cyprus and established a new state known as the “Hellenic Republic of Cyprus”. Then they declared that this state had been annexed by Greece.

Because the collapse of the Republic of Cyprus and the declaration of a new state on the island of Cyprus, as well as the declaration of the annexation of the island of Cyprus to Greece, were in violation of the Republic of Cyprus’s 1960 Constitution and international law, Turkey intervened in 1974 to restore the Republic of Cyprus as a guarantor country.

This is precisely the context for Greek and Greek accusations that “Turkey has occupied the island.” The accusation is entirely fictitious and serves no purpose other than to cover up Greek Cypriot’s and Greece’s own actions.

Following Turkey’s legal and legitimate intervention in 1974, Turkish Cypriots migrated to the northern part of the island and established their own administration to protect themselves from Greek Cypriot attacks. The “Turkish Cypriot Federated State” was established in 1975 with the goal of establishing a “Federal State” jointly with the Greek Cypriots. When the second stage of negotiations, which began in 1977, failed to produce results for six years, due to the Greek Cypriots’ desire to dominate the island solely, Turkish Cypriots declared the “Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus” (TRNC) in 1983 in order to continue the Cyprus negotiations on an equal footing.

The Western world (particularly the United States and the European Union), which contends that Turkey’s legitimate intervention is an occupation – in accordance with Greek theses – chose to punish Turkish Cypriots rather than recognize them. With their inhumane decisions in the United Nations Security Council, they isolated Turkish Cypriots from the rest of the world, severed ties with the other countries, and worked tirelessly to bring them under Greek Cypriot control. Despite the passage of 48 years, Turkish Cypriots’ ties to the rest of the world remain severed. There are no direct flights. Commercial, economic, cultural, educational, sporting, and political connections are all disrupted. Thankfully, after 59 years, the “Organization of Turkic States,” an international community, accepted Turkish Cypriots as members, even if only as observers, with their own state’s name.

Worse, the United States, European Union, Greek Cypriots, and Greeks, who are proud to be the flag bearers of “human rights, democracy, and freedoms,” are working hard to cancel and disrupt Turkish Cypriot membership in the Organization of Turkic States.

This membership is critical for Turkish Cypriots because it provides access to the rest of the world. It demonstrates that Turkish Cypriots are no longer alone, and that they are part of the Organization of Turkic States, which produces more than a trillion dollars in services and goods, has a population of 170 million, and is attempting to become the sole military and political power in the region.

This is the Western world’s problem. They both attack Turkey and make no attempt to hide their dissatisfaction with the TRNC’s visibility, fearing that they will not be able to dominate the Eastern Mediterranean on their own, under any circumstances, or have access to the existing oil and gas fields.

That is, the value and level of the Western world’s “concept of human rights, freedom, and equality” is clearly explained by the deceased British Prime Minister Churchill’s remark, “A drop of oil is more valuable than a drop of human blood.”

Of course, the main goal of the West under any circumstance…

Prof. Dr. (Civ. Eng.), Assoc. Prof. Dr. (Int. Rel.) Ata ATUN

Dean, Cyprus Science University

Political Advisor to the President of the State

November 24, 2022
Armenians Need to Assess French Senate’s Positive Resolution Cool-Headedly

Throughout their long history, Armenians have always expected that some foreign power would rescue them from their enemies. Over the centuries, they hoped for assistance from the Romans, Byzantines, Russians, French, Americans, and now Iranians. But, no one has ever come to save them. One would think that after such a long string of disappointments, Armenians would finally learn the lesson that no one will rescue them. They need to save themselves.

Given such unrealistic expectations, Armenians keep going from one potential rescuer to another, attempting to find anyone that would assist them. No one helped save the Armenians when Ottoman Turkey was committing genocide against them; no one saved them when the survivors returned to Cilicia only to be attacked and killed by Ataturk’s armies; no one helped them in the late 1980’s and early 1990’s when Azeris were massacring Armenians in Artsakh; and no one helped Armenians when Azeris with the support of Jihadist terrorists, Israel and Turkey conquered most of Artsakh, killing and maiming thousands of Armenian soldiers and civilians.

After all of these disappointing experiences, Armenians were hoping that Russia would step in and save Artsakh. When that didn’t happen, Armenians loudly complained that Russia had betrayed them. Armenians kept demanding that the CSTO (Collective Security Treaty Organization) protect Armenia from repeated Azeri encroachments on its borders.

Armenians don’t seem to understand that each nation’s priority is to defend its own national interest, not that of Armenia. No one is obliged to help Armenia, even when a treaty of mutual defense is signed, which is viewed as a mere “a piece of paper.” Rather than abandoning their unrealistic expectations, Armenians have now turned to France and the United States hoping they would come to their rescue!

It is encouraging that in recent months Armenia signed contracts with India to purchase a large number of missiles and artillery. Finally, the Armenian Government is realizing that it needs to defend the country rather than rely on the mercy of others.

Last week, Armenians around the world were elated that the French Senate adopted a pro-Armenian resolution. However, Armenians should neither exaggerate nor minimize the significance of this resolution. The French Armenian community has carried out commendable lobbying activities for many years to create such a sympathetic atmosphere about Armenians and Armenia. That is the main reason why this resolution was adopted by the French Senate with the near unanimous vote of 295 in favor and one against.

The comprehensive French resolution strongly condemned Azerbaijan’s invasion of the sovereign territory of the Republic of Armenia and demanded:

— The immediate withdrawal of Azeri forces from Armenia;

— The release of all Armenian prisoners of war held by Baku since the 2020 war;

— The preservation of Armenian cultural and religious monuments;

— That the French government with the United Nations Security Council refer Azerbaijan’s aggression to the International Criminal Court;

— That France sanction Azerbaijan, seize the assets of its leaders, and place an embargo on the importation of Azeri oil and gas;

— The establishment of a French humanitarian office in Artsakh;

— The strengthening of the defense capability of Armenia;

— The deployment of an interposition force under the aegis of the international community;

— The recognition of the Nagorno Karabagh (Artsakh) Republic;

— That France ensure Azerbaijan engages in peaceful negotiation with Armenia to establish a lasting peace.

Azerbaijan reacted harshly and condemned the French Senate for adopting this resolution. By taking counter-measures, Azerbaijan risks disrupting its diplomatic and economic relations with France. However, for this non-binding resolution to have any effect, it must be adopted by the French National Assembly and backed by the President and Government of France.

Armenians need to have a cool-headed assessment of the French Senate resolution. They should not expect France to save Artsakh or Armenia. They need to continue developing Armenia’s military so they can defend the country’s borders, while welcoming the assistance of any country, without having any unrealistic expectations. Remember that the French Senate and Parliament adopted resolutions after the 2020 war, urging the French government to recognize the Artsakh Republic, which did not materialize. This is not surprising as Armenia itself does not recognize the independence of Artsakh. To avoid further disappointments, Armenians need to view the French Senate resolution as an important moral and diplomatic support, but not a military one.

Another message of support for Armenia and Artsakh came this week when 120 prominent celebrities and intellectuals issued a joint statement in the French “Le Figaro Magazine,” including Claudia Cardinale, Gerard Chaliand, Costa-Gavras, Alain Delon, Bernard-Henri Levy, Yves Ternon, etc. They wrote: “More than a century after the perpetration of the genocide of Armenians by the Ottoman leaders in 1915, the same people are once again victims of two authoritarian regimes which, in Baku as in Ankara, provoke inter-ethnic hatred to endow their unchallenged power with a bloody new trophy….”

It is now up to the Armenian Government and Armenians around the world to see to it that the French Senate resolution and the statement of the 120 celebrities are used to provide additional support for Armenians in Armenia and Artsakh.

November 24, 2022
Kazakhstan on the Eve of the Presidential Election

As Kazakhstan is entering new era of development, my Kazakh colleague compiled a piece to shed a light on the today’s political landscape of the country. In order to share these valuable views, I decided to share his article with our esteemed readers. BTW, Presidential elections are set to be conducted on November 20, 2022.

Kazakhstan is Entering an Era of Change

Anuar Azimov – Public Foundation “Center for Political and Social Research”, Almaty

Each regular election cycle actualizes new challenges to society and authorities in any country in the world. In an era of unstable geopolitical situation, as well as ongoing conflicts, the domestic political situation in Kazakhstan remains relatively calm.

Issues of stability and planned development are an important basis for the satisfaction of social strata with their position.

For example, after the collapse of the Soviet Union and gaining independence, new countries needed a strategy for the development of a sovereign political and economic system, taking into account the current financial realities, mentality, and the national composition of the subject.

In this context, the basis for the systematic development of Kazakhstani society is peace and stability. The cornerstone in this case is inter-ethnic harmony and inter-confessional harmony. These approaches made it possible to preserve and increase the functional viability of the statehood of Kazakhstan over the period of independence.

However, international turbulence and a systematic change in the world order pose new challenges and threats to the country. The main task for Kazakhstan at this stage is to strengthen statehood, cohesion and progressive economic development.

In this regard, the political and institutional reforms put forward by the current President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev correspond to the current realities and are conditioned by the desire to further increase the welfare of Kazakhstani society.

In this regard, early elections, as well as an increase in the term of the presidency, will provide an opportunity for the current head of state to fully build the basis for the implementation of a package of reforms necessary to build a just and prosperous people of Kazakhstan. This is indicated by the positive experience of many democratic Western countries, which took time to build a strategy, systematize and nurture the necessary personnel for the full implementation of evolutionary reforms.

It is now that the moment has come when the Kazakh society, having passed certain years, is ready to accept new changes and transformation for Kazakhstan to become one of the most developed countries peace.

November 10, 2022
When Will the World Put a Stop To Turkey’s Criminal Behavior?

.

For many years, dozens of reports have been written about the Turkish government’s large-scale kidnapping of Turkish citizens from around the world for criticizing Pres. Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s regime.

Exiled investigative Turkish journalist Abdullah Bozkurt has exposed these illegal Turkish activities, providing copies of confidential documents he has received from sources inside the Turkish government. Not surprisingly, Turkey has issued a warrant for his arrest. He publishes the Nordic Monitor in Sweden.

Bozkurt wrote an article on Nov. 3, 2022, in Nordic Monitor, titled: “Spying by Turkish diplomats continued in 2022 with new targets in Norway, Netherlands, Greece.”

Bozkurt published a secret Turkish document issued by the Security General Directorate on June 7, 2022. He revealed that Turkish diplomats stationed at embassies and consulates overseas continue “the unlawful practice of intelligence gathering on critics and opponents in Europe.”

Bozkurt reported that “Two Turkish diplomats, then-Press Attaché Hacı Mehmet Gani and Hakan Kamil Yerge, then-second secretary at the Turkish Embassy in Bern, plotted to drug and kidnap a Swiss-Turkish businessman in 2016. In June 2018, the Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland issued arrest warrants for the two Turkish diplomats.”

In addition to attempting to seize and return home its opponents, the Turkish government jails their relatives at home and confiscates their assets.

In a second article published in Nordic Monitor on Nov. 4, 2022, titled: “Turkish intelligence continues to spy on journalists in Sweden,” Bozkurt reported that Levent Kenez, editor of Nordic Monitor in Sweden, “was spied on by Turkey’s intelligence agency, which leaked his private information to the Turkish media. [Sabah], a newspaper run by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s family, published photos of Kenez last Tuesday in front of his apartment in Stockholm, where he lives with his family, and disclosed his address and details of his daily routine,” endangering their lives. It is clear that after silencing his domestic critics, Erdogan is now trying to silence his critics abroad.

A third article titled, “Turkish diplomats exploited US Homeland Security website to track a dissident in the US,” was published by Bozkurt in Nordic Monitor on Nov. 2, 2022.

Bozkurt revealed a secret Turkish document which showed that the Turkish intelligence agency used the website of US Customs and Border Protection to track a Turkish doctor in the United States who is critical of the Turkish government. It is a crime to access the personal information of individuals on the U.S. government’s website.

Bozkurt reported that in the years 2016-17 alone, Turkish embassies and consulates profiled 4,386 critics of Turkey who were residing abroad. In 2021, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu stated that Turkish diplomats assigned to embassies and consulates have officially been instructed by the government to conduct clandestine spying operations on foreign soil. In addition, pro-Erdogan Turkish networks and organizations overseas have acted as the long arm of the Turkish regime.

In 2019, the U.S. government convicted Kamil Ekim Alptekin, a Turkish government operative, for running surveillance on opponents of Erdogan in the United States. Alptekin remains a fugitive and is currently hiding in Turkey, while his associate Bijan Rafiekian was tried and convicted of acting covertly in 2019 as an agent of the Turkish government in the United States, without disclosing that relationship to the U.S. government, according to Bozkurt.

Matthew Amlot published in Al Arabiya an article on July 12, 2020, titled: “Turkey signed secret agreements with countries to abduct dissidents from abroad.” According to a joint letter written by four UN rapporteurs, “Turkey signed secret agreements with multiple countries [Azerbaijan, Albania, Cambodia, and Gabon] in order to conduct extraterritorial abductions of suspected state dissidents … Turkey also targeted [its] nationals in Afghanistan, Kosovo, Kazakhstan, Lebanon and Pakistan, according to the letter.”

The UN letter stated that “The Government of Turkey, in coordination with other States, is reported to have forcibly transferred over 100 Turkish nationals to Turkey, of which 40 individuals have been subjected to enforced disappearance, mostly abducted off the streets or from their homes all over the world, and in multiple instances along with their children.”

Alice Taylor wrote in “Exit News” that “in November 2018, the Turkish Foreign Minister informed Parliament that 452 extradition requests had been sent to a total of 83 countries.”

Yasir Gokce wrote an article published on Nov. 25, 2018 in Harvard University’s Kennedy School Review, titled: “Turkey’s Kidnappings Abroad Defy International Law.” These illegal abductions should be brought in front of the U.N. Security Council and the International Court of Justice, Gokce suggested.

In 2020, Johan Heymans in collaboration with International Observatory of Human Rights published a 128-page report, based partly on a report by the Ankara Bar Association, documenting the specific cases of deportation or abductions of Turkish citizens from 17 countries: Moldova, Azerbaijan, Gabon, Sudan, Kosovo, Myanmar, Saudi Arabia, Bulgaria, Bahrain, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Pakistan, Ukraine, Lebanon, Malaysia, Switzerland, and Mongolia.

Finally, OpenDemocracy.net published an article by Serdar San on June 16, 2021, titled: “Turkish spies are abducting Erdogan’s political opponents abroad.”

Serdar San correctly observed that “emboldened by a lack of repercussions from NATO and the EU, President Erdogan’s regime is kidnapping dissidents” to silence political dissent. This is the fault of Western governments for turning a blind eye to the illegal behavior of successive Turkish governments, encouraging them to continue violating domestic and international laws for decades.

November 8, 2022