The Voice of Islam team appreciates the fact that over the years the website has gathered a circle of loyal and attentive readers with whom we share common views. They eagerly await our materials and support us as best they can, especially in difficult times. However, what one person appreciates may offend others — that is life, and we accept it as a given.
For example, the two most popular articles on our website this week were «Erdogan’s High-Stakes Gamble or the Great War» (https://golosislama.com/news.php?id=39360) and the summary of Al-Monitor’s article «Turkey Secretly Attempts to Normalize Relations with Israel» (https://golosislama.com/news.php?id=39366). Those readers who seriously considered the analysis in the first article and agreed with its main conclusion were also interested in the content of the second article. However, there were also those who were upset by both articles, which is natural — you can’t please everyone.
For some, it was upsetting that the assumption was made that Greece, France, the United Arab Emirates and Egypt (referred to as «some countries») are theoretically capable of inflicting a military defeat on Turkey in the Mediterranean theater of military operations, a risk we warned about if certain events unfolded. However, such self-confidence and pride often come at a high price for countries with enemies. We recently witnessed this when Armenia, which had achieved a resounding victory in the First Karabakh War, suffered an equally resounding defeat in the Second Karabakh War. This happened because Armenia believed that Azerbaijan would never defeat it, while Azerbaijan spent two and a half decades methodically preparing for revenge.
People with even basic historical memory and critical thinking, who have seen or simply know how powerful enemies eventually dealt with ambitious leaders of Muslim countries like Iraq, Libya and Sudan, understand the risks Turkey faces under the leadership of Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Turkey’s successes under his leadership in infrastructure and military development, as well as the growth of its geopolitical influence and potential, are obvious and commendable. But they should not blind us to the risks. We’re not comparing their goals and methods, but let’s not forget that in their time, France under Napoleon and Germany under Hitler had excellent armies, conquered almost all of Europe, and were on their way to global leadership, but…
Therefore, for those who understand this «but…», the news that Turkey is releasing a new series of drones is no less important. They consider the news of the possible normalization of relations between Turkey and Saudi Arabia or Turkey and Qatar to be just as important. They understand that Turkey’s distancing itself from the anti-Turkish coalition can seriously weaken the coalition, not to mention the desirability of Muslim unity.
The same goes for the rumors about a possible improvement of relations between Turkey and Israel behind the scenes. Someone might argue, why spread rumors and unconfirmed information when there is a Quranic verse: «O you who have believed, if a disobedient comes to you with information, investigate, lest you harm a people out of ignorance and regret what you have done. Indeed, rumors should not be spread as news or facts. However, it was clear from both the title and the introduction of the article we published that it was not about confirmed news, but about a rumor from Al-Monitor, a global website specializing in Middle East issues. The publication of such insights with reference to anonymous sources, sometimes confirmed and sometimes not, is a norm in modern information work, with the caveat that they are rumors and not unconfirmed facts.
As for the content of this message, it is indirectly confirmed by the fact that Israel did not participate in the ongoing Greek-French-Emirati-Egyptian naval and air exercises in the Mediterranean, about which we wrote. In view of the discussion about the possibility of a military conflict between these countries and Turkey, this is good news, considering the collective military potential of all these countries and Israel, which is comparable to Turkey in some parameters and superior in others.
Does this mean that the betrayal of the Palestinian cause, which the UAE authorities are now committing by not only establishing diplomatic relations with Israel but also openly siding with the so-called Jewish settlers, who are not recognized and condemned even by European countries, has taken place? No, because this does not imply a rejection of the principled political position on this issue. Such positions have been expressed not only by Turkey, but also by Saudi Arabia and Jordan, as we have written repeatedly in recent years when others accused them of conspiring with Israel (including some Turkish fans who now have to explain how Turkey is beginning to reconcile with Saudi Arabia). By the way, when we wrote two years ago that Qatari authorities were trying to use Zionist organizations and lobbies in the US to get out of isolation (https://golosislama.com/news.php?id=33778), we were also accused of spreading anti-Islamic falsehoods. But now even the Qatari Al-Jazeera confirms that Jared Kushner, an American Zionist and son-in-law of Donald Trump, is helping Qatar to normalize relations with Saudi Arabia (https://golosislama.com/news.php?id=39371).
We must understand that while the Palestine issue is of paramount importance to Muslims, and we must uphold positions confirmed by international law (an independent Palestine with its capital in East Jerusalem, the dismantling of settlements and the return of displaced refugees), global politics, including the Islamic Ummah, is not focused solely on this issue and cannot revolve around it, no matter how much someone may wish it to.
The example of the Karabakh problem, for the (partial) solution of which Azerbaijan has waited 26 years, systematically preparing militarily and participating in negotiations, has shown once again that some problems require a combination of principled positions and patience, in other words, a marathon rather than a sprint. Palestine is one of these problems, but it must be very clear that its solution requires the Muslim world to stand on an equal footing not only with Israel but also with the United States, which protects it. Turkey is still at the beginning of this path in historical terms. If Turkey, like a sprinter on a short distance, completely exhausts itself and runs out of breath, we will be set back several decades in solving all such problems, not only the Palestinian one.
Moreover, let’s face it — whether we like it or not, Muslims now live in a reality of nation-states and politics. Despite their common Islamic agenda, many are not motivated to change it. In this reality, different segments of the global Islamic ummah shape their priorities, just as the Palestinians have built their relationships with Russia, Iran, or Assad, despite, to put it mildly, serious problems between them and oppressed Muslim nations.
This does not mean, of course, that we should support Israel against these nations in retaliation. After all, for us, the issue of the first qibla land and the waqf of the Islamic ummah is our issue, not just a Palestinian issue. But it also means that we can and should prioritize our own interests in solving the challenges before us. For us, the Muslims of Western Eurasia (post-Soviet countries, Turkey, and Europe — i.e., the space of Turkic, Caucasian, Aryan, and European peoples), the emergence of a Muslim center of power and a space for development in our macro-region of the planet is more important than solving the problems of the Arab world. After about a century of trying to isolate itself in the Islamic revival, the Arab world has finally returned to a state of complete dependence on non-Arab forces, as it has been since the time of the Abbasids (https://golosislama.com/news.php?id=39080).
Based on the above, first, we will continue to share critical and alarming assessments of events in the Muslim world, as well as versions and hypotheses that may contradict someone’s naive understanding of the world. Secondly, as we are committed to the interests of all Muslims, we will evaluate events and projects based on the priority of the interests of our geopolitical part of the Ummah, given the impossibility of defending them all simultaneously and equally.