Editorial: Türkiye’s betrayal

India cannot afford to swallow Ankara’s betrayal silently and must revisit all the trade, business, research and academic exchange arrangements with Türkiye

The recent India-Pakistan conflict, following the horrific Pahalgam terror attack, has exposed the betrayal of Türkiye which expressed unqualified solidarity with Islamabad despite the latter’s continued support for cross-border terrorism. Historically, India had always extended a hand of friendship — from standing by the Ottoman Empire during the Khilafat Movement to deepening cooperation with modern Türkiye in trade, technology, education and cultural exchanges. But today, New Delhi stands betrayed by a country it once supported during its most critical moment in history. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, an authoritarian leader pursuing a muscular brand of political Islam, has not only pledged political and ideological support to Islamabad but also provided drones and personnel to Pakistan during the military hostilities. This revealed Ankara’s dangerous ambitions to become the ideological capital of a pan-Islamist world order — even at the cost of peace in South Asia. Instead of condemning the dastardly attack on tourists in Pahalgam, Türkiye chose to criticise ‘Operation Sindoor’, a measured and precise retaliatory strike by India targeting the terror infrastructure in Pakistan. Clearly, Türkiye’s messaging and actions raise suspicion over Ankara backing terrorists and terror motives in Pakistan. It has, for long, supported Pakistan’s communal narrative of the Two-Nation Theory, as well as Islamabad and Rawalpindi’s narrative of Kashmir. Immediately after the Pahalgam terror attack, while the world stood in solidarity with India, Türkiye sent a vast amount of military assets to Pakistan. President Erdogan, pursuing a vain dream of resurrecting the Turkish-Ottoman empire, believes that Pakistan, with its hollow ambitions of becoming the rallying point of a global radical ummah, will partner him in realising that pipe dream.

The pampering and patronising of a rogue state like Pakistan seems to be ingrained in Erdogan’s foreign policy. This also proves that Erdogan believes in terror as a legitimate weapon of hegemony. Back home, he has completely dismantled Turkish secularism, jailing dissidents, muzzling the media and openly promoting an Islamist agenda. India cannot afford to swallow Ankara’s betrayal silently. There is a need to revisit all the trade, business, research and academic exchange arrangements with Türkiye in the light of the recent experience. India cannot keep its windows open to propaganda disguised as intellectual cooperation. This betrayal stings more because of the historical goodwill India extended to Türkiye. Turkish firms operating in India are now on the chopping block, while several universities and research institutions have cancelled their agreements with Türkiye. Several Indians have cancelled travel bookings for Turkish destinations. Türkiye’s aviation firm, Celebi, which is partially owned by the daughter of President Erdogan, is also under scanner. Erdogan’s regime has been consistently hostile to India with complete disregard for the deep-rooted bilateral trade arrangements. During the 2023 earthquake that ravaged Türkiye, India was among the first countries to respond with relief material under ‘Operation Dost’ mission to provide immediate assistance.