(SeaPRwire) –
By: Julian Holbrooke
The NATO summit in Ankara is a masterclass in distraction. While the world watches Iran and Ukraine, a darker narrative is unfolding on the sidelines. The rhetoric coming from Ankara has crossed a line that most statesmen fear to touch. Sinan Ciddi, a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, described Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan’s comments as “some of the vilest rhetoric to come out of any statesman since the Holocaust.” This is not merely a political disagreement; it is a revival of the darkest chapters of the 20th century. The Turkish leadership is using the platform of a security alliance to promote a narrative that undermines the very values the alliance claims to defend.
When we look at the raw facts, the intent becomes terrifyingly clear. Fidan called Israel a “burden humanity can no longer bear” and a representative of “humanity’s common problems.” Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar responded with a stark warning. He called Fidan’s words a “clear call for genocide.” Sa’ar noted that such language sounds familiar to the rhetoric used about 100 years ago. He asked a chilling question: “What do you do with a burden that you can no longer bear?” The subtext here is a systematic attempt to strip the Jewish state of its legitimacy and humanity. This escalation did not happen overnight. It goes all the way back to 2008 when President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan began the process of ripping apart the bilateral relationship. After Oct. 7, it just went into overdrive. The language has become visceral, with Erdoğan accusing Israel of being a “terror state that feeds on the blood, lives and tears of the innocent.”
The disconnect between the official narrative and the public reality is stark. The Turkish public is deeply poisoned. Pew Research found that 91 percent of the population holds “very unfavorable” views on Israel. This is not just political posturing; it is a societal sickness. Yet, the United States State Department maintains a facade of normalcy. A spokesperson stated that “Türkiye is a longstanding and valued NATO Ally and we continue to engage on all aspects of our important and multi-faceted relationship.” The subtext is that strategic interests in the region are outweighing the moral imperative to condemn antisemitism. The administration is engaging in a dangerous game of appeasement, ignoring the “numerous channels” available to reprimand Turkey for its unchecked hatred.
The geopolitical pendulum is shifting, and it is swinging toward instability. Turkey is attempting to whitewash its human rights record while promoting itself as a premiere NATO ally. As Sinan Ciddi warned, we cannot safeguard democratic norms if we do not hold member states accountable for the threats that they present. The Turkish Embassy in Washington, D.C., remains silent, and the silence from the West is deafening. It suggests that the alliance is willing to tolerate the very rhetoric that threatens the foundation of international order.