Opinions - Turkey

Erdoğan's Blackmail Diplomacy

Erdoğan's Blackmail Diplomacy

by Haşim Tekineş, published on 9 January 2024
Erdogan's blackmailing diplomacy led to a loss of credibility and a lack of trust about Turkey. While Turkey's demands were mostly rejected, it eventually gave up its leverage occasionally with modest gains.
Venezuela’s Dangerous Play in Essequibo and Lessons from Turkey

Venezuela’s Dangerous Play in Essequibo and Lessons from Turkey

by İmdat Öner, published on 25 December 2023
In early December, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro held a referendum, seeking public opinion on the potential inclusion of the sparsely populated Essequibo region of Guyana into Venezuela. The government reported that 95 percent of voters supported the idea, asserting Venezuela's claim to Essequibo. While official media celebrated the outcome as a decisive mandate, reports from witnesses suggested a low voter turnout.
Kızıldeniz’de İsrail’e Giden Gemilere Saldırılar ve Refah Muhafızları Operasyonu

Kızıldeniz’de İsrail’e Giden Gemilere Saldırılar ve Refah Muhafızları Operasyonu

by Enes Esen, published on 23 December 2023
Yemen’deki Husilerin Filistin’e destek vermek üzere 31 Ekim’de İsrail’e savaş ilan etmesi Tel Aviv yönetimi tarafından haliyle ilk günlerde pek ciddiye alınmamıştı. İsrail’den 2.000 km uzaklıkta yer alan Husilerin İsrail’e saldırabilecek bir hava kuvvetleri ve donanması bulunmuyor. İran’dan tedarik ettiği bazı füzeleri İsrail’e ulaşabilecek olmakla birlikte, bunların sayısı hem az, hem de bu ilkel füzelerin ABD ve İsrail’in hava savunma sistemlerini geçmesi imkansıza yakın.
Turkey in 2023: Navigating Turbulence - Erdogan's Quest for Normalcy

Turkey in 2023: Navigating Turbulence - Erdogan's Quest for Normalcy

by Haşim Tekineş, published on 17 December 2023
In 2023, Turkey completed the year without witnessing significant shifts in its domestic politics and foreign policy. The fusion of authoritarianism with crony capitalism and fluctuations in diplomatic relations persisted, reflecting a continuity with previous years.
Turkish-Made Killer Drones in Africa and Mounting Civilian Causalities

Turkish-Made Killer Drones in Africa and Mounting Civilian Causalities

by Enes Esen, published on 15 December 2023
Turkey typically displays utter indifference to the involvement of their drones in the killing of civilians in Africa, whether the incidents are allegedly accidental or intentional. As usual, there was not a word from the Turkish government on the latest strike in Nigeria.
Erdoğan’ın Almanya Ziyareti: Uçak Olmasa da Mülteci Alabiliriz

Erdoğan’ın Almanya Ziyareti: Uçak Olmasa da Mülteci Alabiliriz

by Ahmet Baransu, published on 20 November 2023
Cumhurbaşkanı Erdoğan'ın 17 Kasım günü Almanya'ya gerçekleştirdiği ziyaret her iki ülkenin de ana gündem maddelerinin ilk sırasında yer aldı. Bu ziyaret sırasında Erdoğan, Almanya Başbakanı Scholz ve Cumhurbaşkanı Steinmeier ile birer görüşme gerçekleştirdi. Ziyaret öncesi Erdoğan ve Scholz’un doğrudan birbirlerini hedef alan açıklamaları sonrası tansiyon bu kadar yükselmişken ve Almanya tarafından Erdoğan'a yönelik tepkiler bu kadar artmışken Scholz - Erdoğan görüşmesinin neden iptal edilmediği ya da en azından başka bir tarihe ertelenmediği sorusu karşımıza çıkıyor.

Reports - Turkey

TURKEY‘S MASS PURGE AS VIOLATIONS OF THE RIGHT TO PARTICIPATE IN PUBLIC SERVICE IN ICCPR

TURKEY‘S MASS PURGE AS VIOLATIONS OF THE RIGHT TO PARTICIPATE IN PUBLIC SERVICE IN ICCPR

by instituDE, published on 23 October 2024
'A gift from God' was one of Erdoğan's first descriptions related to coup attempt in July 15. At first no one realized that God's gift meant a chaotic environment in which he needed to declare a national emergency with no checks and balances and then transform Türkiye’s parliamentary democracy into an executive presidency.
JUDICIAL CORRUPTION IN TÜRKİYE

JUDICIAL CORRUPTION IN TÜRKİYE

by instituDE and Arrested Lawyers, published on October 2024
This submission to the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) highlights severe issues undermining the integrity of Türkiye's judiciary, particularly focusing on rampant judicial corruption and impunity as well as human rights abuses which they facilitate. Based on the most recent incidents of corruption concerning members of the judiciary who serve in courts in Istanbul, Izmir and Ankara, this report seeks to examine the high-level corruption within the judiciary and the Turkish government’s failure or even willful ignorance in addressing it.
TURKEY'S GROWING ROLE IN GLOBAL COCAINE TRAFFICKING

TURKEY'S GROWING ROLE IN GLOBAL COCAINE TRAFFICKING

by Dr. İmdat Öner, Halil Çavuş, Ömer Güler and Mustafa Enes Esen, published on 17 September 2024
This report focuses on Turkey's prominence as an emerging market for cocaine trafficking and organized crime in the last decade. Cocaine production in Latin America has dramatically increased since 2013, and Turkey’s status as an emerging market has attracted the attention of Latin American government officials on the front lines of the cocaine trade.
WEAPONIZING FINANCIAL SYSTEMS: ERDOĞAN'S TRANSNATIONAL REPRESSION TO MUZZLE DISSIDENTS ABROAD

WEAPONIZING FINANCIAL SYSTEMS: ERDOĞAN'S TRANSNATIONAL REPRESSION TO MUZZLE DISSIDENTS ABROAD

by Dr. Yasir Gökçe, Mayra Russo and Sara Kezia Heinonen, published on 29 August 2024
This report sets out to provide a comprehensive analysis of the tactics employed by the Erdoğan administration to achieve repressive goals abroad and the vulnerabilities and how they are enabled by the AML and CFT regulation in place.
ENFORCED DISAPPEARANCES BY THE ERDOGAN GOVERNMENT

ENFORCED DISAPPEARANCES BY THE ERDOGAN GOVERNMENT

by instituDE, published in June 2024
This submission highlights the ongoing systematic actions and omissions by Turkish authorities against the so-called members of the Gulen Group, framed as crimes against humanity. It demonstrates the violations of recommendations that even Türkiye has supported.
UNVEILING THE BRUTAL REALITY: SYSTEMATIC TORTURE OF FORMER DIPLOMATS

UNVEILING THE BRUTAL REALITY: SYSTEMATIC TORTURE OF FORMER DIPLOMATS

by instituDE, published on May 2024
This report offers an update to the United Nations Committee against Torture (the Committee) regarding the obstacles to implementing the Convention against Torture (the Convention) in Turkey. As a coalition formed by a collective of former Turkish diplomats, our focus is on the systematic torture faced by former diplomats detained at Ankara Police Headquarters. We delve into the Turkish context and present insights from our organization.

Videos - Turkey

Erdoğan ve Bahçeli Cepheyi Mi Guçlendiriyor?

October 18, 2024
by Ali Dinçer and Haşim Tekineş, published on 18 October 2024
Bu hafta Ali Dinçer ve Haşim Tekineş Türkiye'de yeniden konuşulmaya başlayan çözüm süreci mevzuunu, konunun Orta Doğu'daki şiddet sarmalı ile irtibatını, AB finansmanı ile Türkiye'deki geri gönderme merkezlerinde yaşanan hak ihlallerini ve Kanada-Hindistan arasındaki diplomatik krizi ele aldılar.

Dışişleri'ne Silahlı Güç

September 26, 2024
by Ali Dinçer and Haşim Tekineş, published on 26 September 2024
Bu yayınımızda Ali Dinçer ve Haşim Tekineş, haftanın öne çıkan dış politika gündemlerinden İsrail-Hizbullah gerilimi bağlamında Lübnan'da savaşa yaklaşan vaziyeti, Dışişleri Bakanlığı'nda silahlı donanımı olan bir güvenlik biriminin kurulmasına ilişkin son düzenlemeyi ve F-35 savaş uçağı projesinden çıkarılan Türkiye'nin bu uçakları alabilmesine yönelik ileri sürülen S-400'lerden bir biçimde vazgeçmeyi içeren bir çözüm önerisini ele aldılar.

Transnational Repression: Weaponizing Financial Systems

September 25, 2024
by Dr. Yasir Gökçe, Haşim Tekineş, Mayra Russo and Sara Kezia Heinonen, published on 25 September 2024
In this episode, Dr. Yasir Gökçe, Mayra Russo, Sara Kezia Heinonen and Haşim Tekineş discussed our report published in August on weaponizing financial systems by Turkey against its opponents. The co-authors of the report shared more details over this abuse of Turkey.

Mısır'la Yeni Bir Sayfa

September 5, 2024
by Ali Dinçer and Haşim Tekineş, published on 5 September 2024
Bu yayınımızda Ali Dinçer ve Haşim Tekineş Mısır-Türkiye normalleşmesini, Sisi'nin bu haftaki Türkiye ziyaretini ve Türkiye'nin BRICS'e katılma niyetini değerlendirdiler.

BM'den AİHM'e Yusuf Bilge Tunç Uyarısı

August 23, 2024
By Hakan Kaplankaya and Haşim Tekineş, published on 23 August 2024
Bu yayınımızda Hakan Kaplankaya, Ağustos 2019'da kaçırılan ve kendisinden hala haber alınamayan KHK'lı Yusuf Bilge Tunç hakkındaki AİHM'in verdiği olayda ihlal olmadığı kararını, konuya ilişkin BM İnsan Hakları Komitesi'nin 19 Ağustos 2024'te verdiği kararı ele aldı.

Rusya İşgal Altında

August 16, 2024
by Ali Dinçer and Haşim Tekineş, published on 16 August 2024
Haftanın önemli uluslararası gündemlerinden Ukrayna'nın Rusya topraklarına girmesini, Gazze'de şiddetin devam edişini, ateşkes görüşmelerini, Biden'ın görevdeki son üç ayında Gazze savaşına dair adım atma olasılığı, Mahmut Abbas'ın Türkiye temasları ile ABD seçim sürecine dair son gelişmeleri ele aldılar.