India & Its Bilateral Ties
Source: The Economic Times
Context:
The author talks about the rising of pan-Turkism & its impact on India.
Editorial Insights:
Though Internationalism based on religion, region, or secular ideologies has always run headlong into resistance from sectarianism & nationalism, they have a profound impact on global politics.
In the international era, the call for regionalism, internationalism, religious & ethnic solidarity are used up as instruments for pursuing national interest.
At the moment, the Turkish Prez Erdogan plays this internationalist card better than the rest for national benefit.
Erdogan in pursuit of the above has been promoting both Islamist politics & now pan-Turkism.
Which is a cause of worry for India.
Significance of Turkey:
- For the past 3 decades, several soft-power initiatives have raised Turkey’s profile in Central Asia & generated new bonds with the region's elites.
- At the same time, Turkey’s hard-power progress has been impressive.
- Turkish annual trade with the region is $10 billion, which would increase more as Turkey strengthens connectivity with Central Asia through the Caucasus.
- It also made impressive progress in building transportation corridors to Central Asia & beyond.
- For instance, Lapi Lazuli Corridor now connects Turkey to Afghanistan via Turkmenistan.
- It has stunned the world with its military power projection into the region.
- For example, in the Azerbaijan & Armenia war, Turkish drones played a key role in Azerbaijan’s victory.
- For the Central Asian states, living under the shadows of Chinese economic & Russia’s Military Power, Turkey offers an opportunity for economic diversification & greater strategic autonomy.
Pan-Turkism:
- The ideology of pan-Turkism is originated in the mid-19th century when campaigns for uniting Turkic people in Russia gained traction.
- Over time, its geographic scope become much wider covering the huge spread of Turkic people from the Balkans to the Great Wall of China.
- However, in the 20th century, the decline of Turkey & the integration of Turkic people into other states steadily diminished the salience of pan-Turkism.
- Again after the disintegration of the Soviet Union in 1991, Turkey started using the opportunities to engage with the newly independent republics of Turkish ethnicity in the Central Asian region.
The Organization of Turkic States (OTS):
- In 1992, Turkey Prez convened the 1st Turkish summit with some central Asian states.
- With the arrival of Erdogan into the scene in 2002, the process has speeded up.
- He converted the annual summit with the inner Asian states into a Council of Turkic States in 2009 with Azerbaijan, Kyrgyzstan &Kazakhstan as founding members.
- It was hailed as the first voluntary alliance of the Turkey states in history.
- In 2021, at the Council leaders’ summit, the forum has been elevated to an Organization of Turkic States.
- Several nations are interested in joining the OTS.
- OTS also adopted a vision document called Turkish World 2040 that guides the organization's efforts to develop intensive cooperation among its members & contribute to regional & international security.
- Pan-Turkism certainly adds another layer of complexity to Eurasian geopolitics.
India & Turkey in the complex dynamics:
India is quite familiar with transnational politics of Asianism, Islamism & Communist internationalism.
Since independence, India has been building a large movement of developing countries against the rich global north.
Pan-Turkism that makes Eurasian geopolitics more complex will be another reason to explore a more purposeful engagement with Turkey.
However, there are very real & serious differences between India & Turkey.
The current divergence only reinforces the case for a sustained dialogue between two nations.
The current policy provides an insight that Erdogan’s enduring enthusiasm for Pak does not preclude Turkey from doing business with India.
At the same time, many East Mediterranean countries that got offended by Turkey are eager to expand strategic cooperation with India in limiting Turkish hegemony.
It opens up a new opportunity for Indian foreign & security policy in Eurasia.
Even if Erdogan loses his control & power in Turkey, it does not alter the Indian imperative to engage with Turkey.
Concluding Lines:
Even Turkey’s current regime, Turkey will endure as pivotal state in Eurasia. India since independence has struggled a lot to develop good relations with Turkey. It is high time for India to take further steps in opening up new possibilities & in Turkey’s Eurasian periphery.
