Pakistan's Ally Türkiye Gets Rattled By India's Diplomacy; Erdogan's Anxiety Mounts

Ankara: Turkish defense experts are concerned about India's rapidly growing security partnership with Greece and Cyprus—two nations with which Turkey has long-standing disputes. Turkey views both countries as adversaries and frequently issues threats against them. Consequently, Armenia and Greece have strengthened their defense ties with India.

Turkish defense experts find this development hard to digest, viewing it as a proxy war against their country. Ironically, Turkey has itself been waging a proxy war against India in tandem with Pakistan for decades; it supports Pakistan on the Kashmir issue and openly backed Pakistan during 'Operation Sindoor'.

Has India Joined Hands with Turkey's Adversaries?

According to reports, strategic circles in Turkey believe that India's expanding diplomatic and military ties in the Eastern Mediterranean are a counter-move to the close friendship between Turkey and Pakistan in South Asia. They are unsettled by India's military relations and arms deals with Armenia, Greece, and Cyprus. Turkish experts perceive that India views the Turkey-Pakistan alliance as a threat and is responding diplomatically by effectively encircling Turkey within its own region. In strategic terms, this approach is described as a "tit-for-tat" strategy.

According to a report by the 'Eurasian Times', India's strategy is not anti-Turkey. The primary driver behind the intensification of India's ties with Greece, Cyprus, and Armenia is the support these three nations have shown for the 'India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor' (IMEC); the move has little to do with Turkey itself. India, Greece, Cyprus, and Armenia share the vision that Greece and Cyprus will serve as strategic and military bases for the European terminal of the IMEC. This is because regional conflicts involving Iran and Israel are causing delays to the overland route of the IMEC, which passes through the Middle East. Consequently, India and its Mediterranean partners are actively planning to secure the corridor's maritime entry point into Europe.

Understand Erdogan's anti-India stance?

Turkey has long supported Pakistan regarding the Kashmir issue. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan openly expresses his support for Pakistan. He has personally made false and inflammatory statements—such as alleging an Indian "occupation" of Kashmir and the "oppression of Muslims in India"—on multiple occasions at the United Nations. Furthermore, following the fall of the Sheikh Hasina-led government in Bangladesh, he encouraged Turkey's religious institution, 'Diyanet', to establish ties with the interim government led by Muhammad Yunus and to provide financial assistance to 'Jamaat-e-Islami' (JeI), a staunchly anti-India party in Bangladesh.