The Western Question

 

Şaban Recai Öztürk

 March 28, 2026     http://srecaio.blogspot.com.tr

The Eastern Question is an international problem that arose between the late 1700s and early 1900s with the disintegration of the "Sick Man of Europe," the Ottoman Empire. As a political term, it was first used at the Congress of Vienna in 1815.

According to some historians, it is the final phase of the East-West struggle that began with the Crusades. Some argue that the Eastern Question began with the arrival of the Ottoman Turks in Europe. The conquest of Europe by the Western Huns in the 5th century is also discussed, but in reality, the Ottoman conquests, from their crossing into Balkans to their advance to the gates of Vienna, gave rise to the Eastern Question. Some refer to it as the expulsion of the Turks from Europe. There are also those who base the problem on the special religious status of the Eastern Mediterranean, Southeastern Anatolia, and Mesopotamia for Judaism and Christianity. Some define the Eastern Question on a global scale as the partitioning of South Asia, the Far East, and the Middle East, and the colonization of their natural and energy resources.

If we examine the issue from political, economic, social, and military perspectives and extend it to the present day, we can see that the goal has not been achieved, but the efforts continue. In a period where the international order is shaken, democracy and human rights are disregarded, US-Israeli attacks are most recently concentrated on Iran, and Türkiye is directly affected by external dynamics, it is appropriate to examine the historical development of the Eastern Question.

The Arabs began their conquests during the Caliphate of Osman. Their three main axed were Africa, Anatolia and Asia. The Ottoman Empire, however, had almost made European dominance a fixed idea. This was a legacy from Genghis Khan; the goal of world domination was to reach Europe. The Ottoman ruling elite was drawn from the Balkans. After Yavuz Sultan Selim, they left the Middle East to its own devices. The Kurds lived autonomously in their mountains and plains, while the Arabs lived stagnantly in their deserts for centuries. The Ottoman Empire clashed with Iran until the Treaty of Kasr-ı Şirin in 1639, severing its ties with Central Asian Muslims and the Turkic world. This wasn't so important, as the primary goal was Europe.

Following the Prophet's hadith, Sultan Mehmed the Conqueror captured Istanbul in 1453, a city the Arabs had failed to conquer, but his ultimate goal was Rome. After Istanbul, he aimed to bring Rome and the Vatican under his dominion, to rule Europe, and to become a world power. His grandson Yavuz and his son Süleyman the Magnificent carried this ambition further east and west, wielding the sword of Islam. In fact, I believe that instead of clashing with the Shiite and Turkic-origin Safavids in Iran, if sufficient strength had been gathered for an alliance, they could have crushed all of Europe and even united with Muslim Andalusia in Spain! But it didn't happen...

Süleyman the Magnificent was a major player in the geopolitical balance of power in 1500s Europe. He skillfully pursued a policy of destabilizing Europe in response to European expansion, particularly targeting the Roman Catholic Church and the Habsburg Holy Roman Empire (HRE). He provided financial support to Protestant states in the struggle between Catholicism and Protestantism, with some historians even suggesting that Protestantism would not have succeeded without Ottoman support. King Henry II of France needed an alliance with the Ottomans against Emperor Charles V of the HRE. This alliance was a cornerstone of Ottoman European policy. This policy ran parallel to supporting German Protestant principalities that sought independence from the HRE by exploiting religious differences. Süleyman forced the German Protestant princes to cooperate with France against the Pope and the Emperor, securing their protection against Ottoman conquests. Ottoman pressure between 1521 and 1555 forced the HRE Emperor to make concessions to the Protestants, and eventually, Protestantism was reluctantly, but officially, recognized. I recall that in the 1500s, the Ottomans granted a formal independence to Venice, Poland, and the HRE Empire, which they had subjected to tribute, and that the same was true for King Francis I of France, who sought alliance and assistance from the Ottomans. However, while Süleyman the Magnificent halted the Catholic threat and expansion, he inadvertently failed to realize that he was encouraging Protestantism and capitalist imperialism, which would be more dangerous and ultimately lead to the end of the Ottoman Empire. Perhaps Hürrem Sultan's secret Jewishness worked in favor of Protestantism (!).

But geopolitics was overlooked. The West was going through the Renaissance, the Reformation, worldwide explorations, art, commerce, science, technology, and the industrial revolution. The nature of military power was changing.

From the 16th century onwards, the withdrawal of Turkic states in Eurasia began. The first disintegration occurred in Russia. During the reign of Ivan the Terrible (1570), the Russians invaded Turkic Khanates, starting with Kazan and Astrakhan. Later, they defeated the Golden Horde. The second withdrawal began on the European front. After the expulsion of the Andalusian Arabs from Spain in 1492, it was the turn of the Ottomans to be driven out of Central Europe and the Balkans. The period of stagnation (1579-1683, following the defeats at Vienna) and then the period of decline followed. The final withdrawal occurred on the Indian front. The Babur Empire (1526-1858), based on Timur and Genghis Khan, declined and disappeared from history when Europeans reached India by sea.

The Second Battle of Vienna ended Europe's defensive position against the Ottomans. The first phase of the Eastern Question (New Crusades) ended.

The 1815 Congress of Vienna marked the beginning of the second phase of the Eastern Question, with the redrawing of the European map and the partitioning of Ottoman territories. The Treaty of Sèvres in 1920 partitioned and occupied Anatolia. Just when we thought the second phase of the Eastern Question was over, another problem arose: Atatürk's Turkey, having won the War of Independence, intervened. The 1923 Treaty of Lausanne did not create Kurdistan, Pontus, or Armenia, but it did not secure the oil fields of Mosul and Kirkuk.

The third phase of the Eastern Question has indeed begun. However, the West, having struggled against the fascism of Hitler, Franco, and Mussolini in the 1930s and Communism after World War II, was forced to somewhat postpone this third phase. The state of Israel, established in 1948, became the West's outpost in the Middle East. Judaism was made the problem of the Muslim world. Europe left the region to US leadership.

After the 1967 Arab-Israeli War, Mossad and the CIA established relations with the Kurds. Money, weapons, and other aid would continue for years. In 1969, the US organized the Islamist Green Belt against the Soviets. The following year, Alparslan Türkeş blended Turkish nationalism with Islam. Necmettin Erbakan founded the National Order Party, the first party of the National Vision movement, with an alliance of Naqshbandi-Nurcu-Qadiri orders.

The Cyprus Peace Operation of July 20, 1974, a renewed challenge by the Turks to the US and the West, much like the War of Independence, created problems in the third phase of the Eastern Question. But it didn't stop their efforts. Within a few years, the PKK was founded. Turkey was plunged into a period of assassinations, right-left conflicts, the massacre of Alevis, martial law, economic collapse, and political deadlock. The September 12, 1980 Military Coup prepared the legal and political infrastructure suitable for the US's aims: prohibitions, restrictions on social rights, and the advancement of big capital.

Following the collapse of the pro-Western Shah regime in Iran in 1979, the US's instigation of Saddam Hussein led to the eight-year Iran-Iraq war, changing the components of the equation in the third phase. Iraq fell into the US's trap. In 1990, it invaded Kuwait, but with the First Gulf War, it was forced to withdraw six months later.

In 1983, the groundbreaking ceremony for the Atatürk Dam, the world's fourth largest dam on the Euphrates River, led to problems with Syria. Syria began providing the PKK with all kinds of logistical, weapons, and military training support. Turkey initially demanded the expulsion of Armenian ASALA militants from Syria. ASALA ended its terrorist activities in 1984, but this time the PKK gained prominence with the Eruh and Şemdinli raids. Two years later, the US presented a plan for a Kurdistan under Turkish protection to Özal. Chief of General Staff General Necdet Üruğ rejected it.

In the 1990s, Neoconservatism, a fusion of Jewish fundamentalism and Christian Zionism, rose in the West. Following the collapse of the Soviet system, the West left the industrial age behind and defined itself as a post-modern society in the information age.

In Türkiye, Islamism and Kurdish nationalism were revived. The Pontus issue had faded from the agenda. Now, themes of minority rights, human rights, and democracy could begin to be addressed. The 1990 RAND report, a CIA subsidiary, was interesting: the Islamist movement would rise and would not harm the US. The Kurdish movement would strengthen if it united with the Islamist movement. If militant Kurdish groups shifted from Marxism to Islam, they would act against the state, and the Islamist movement could become more effective.

Fethullah Gülen, who embraced the Turkish-Islamic synthesis and extreme nationalism, changed; he began advocating an Americanized model of Islam, like the Naqshbandi sheikh Esad Coşan. In Türkiye, it began to be written that "Israel is the greatest ally of the Kurds." The People's Labor Party (HEP) was established for political action.

President Turgut Özal's decision to involve Türkiye in the US-led Iraq War without a plan, preparation, or equipment created problems again in the third phase of the Eastern Question. Chief of General Staff General Necip Torumtay resigned, preventing participation in the war. The Turkish Armed Forces resisted. The US had to resolve this problem with punishment.

UN Security Council Resolution 688 of April 5, 1991, which called for the establishment of a safe zone for Kurds in Iraq by the Allies, was a positive development in the third phase. The US and Israel placed great importance on a powerful Kurdish presence to be placed between the Turks, Arabs, and Iran.

Work was also being done on Islamism. In 1995, former US Ambassador and CIA agent Abramovich visited Istanbul Mayor Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, and the project to replace Erbakan with Erdoğan began. That year, the Welfare Party won the elections with 21.4% of the vote and 158 parliamentary seats. Reports from the RAND Corporation and US strategy centers stated: "The US can no longer control Türkiye with parties like ANAP and DYP; if the reformist wing takes over the Welfare Party, Erdoğan becomes Prime Minister, and Abdullah Gül becomes Foreign Minister, the US can continue to keep Türkiye under control."

The National Security Council's decisions of February 28, 1997, purged the anti-Western Islamist Erbakan, but backfired, strengthening the Islamist movement through a narrative of victimhood. The following year, US Consul General Caroline Hagins visited Erdoğan, whose prison sentence had been upheld.

Turkey issued a final warning to Syria in 1998 for supporting the PKK. Assad expelled Öcalan from Syria. Öcalan was captured in Kenya in 1999 while leaving the Greek Embassy. Around that time, Fethullah Gülen was smuggled to the US. The masterminds behind the February 28 coup had given up Öcalan in exchange for Gülen.

The economic crises of 2000 and 2001 paved the way for the AKP's rise to power. In 2003, the US's Second Iraq War, in addition to Israel, solidified the foundations of a second Kurdish outpost in the Middle East. The Sulaymaniyah Sack Incident in Iraq marked the beginning of an operation to cripple the Turkish Armed Forces and establish Iraqi Kurdistan. Erdoğan was elected a member of parliament, his political ban and corruption files were swept under the rug, and he became prime minister. In 2004, US President Bush gave Erdoğan the co-chairmanship of the Greater Middle East Project (the third phase of the Eastern Question). In a democratic, secular, and Muslim Türkiye, the AKP, with its Muslim Brotherhood roots, could serve as an example for Muslim countries.

In 2005, Syrian troops withdrew from Lebanon after 29 years, in accordance with a UN resolution. Israel felt somewhat relieved. Fethullah Gülen spoke in the US: "We will overcome the nationalist wave."

In 2007, at a meeting in the US, Erdoğan received instructions from Bush to press the Ergenekon button. In 2009, civilian courts were given the authority to investigate and try military personnel if they committed one of the 33 crimes under Article 250 of the Criminal Procedure Code, even in peacetime. The following year, with the constitutional amendments referendum, the judiciary was completely placed under the control of the political power and FETÖ (Fethullah Teror Organization). 35 high-ranking CIA-Pentagon officials, who would assist the Fethullahist team within the police force in the attack on the Turkish Armed Forces, arrived in Ankara and began working in contact with the US Defense Cooperation Office (ODC). They then settled in the Yıldız Bureau. A serious civilian coup was beginning.

In 2010, the Balyoz (2003, 1st Army Planning Seminar) so-called coup plan came to light with forged documents. The following year, Erbakan passed away, and the February 28 investigation began. In the following years, the Arab Spring operations began in Tunisia, Egypt, and Syria. US radars were installed in Malatya-Kürecik to warn Israel against Iranian ballistic missiles. Syrian diplomats were expelled from our country. Syria shot down our RF-4E reconnaissance aircraft. In the internet memorandum investigation, former Chief of General Staff, Retired General İlker Başbuğ, was arrested on charges of "being a leader of an organization and attempting a coup" and taken to Silivri prison. The BALYOZ case verdict: 330 officers received sentences of 20, 18, and 16 years in prison.

During this period, interestingly, the FETÖ and US operations against the AKP began. One of the partners was becoming excessive.

In 2012, Israel made a significant move. With US support, it became a NATO partner and opened an office at NATO headquarters.

In 2013, Ümit Özdağ revealed: Davutoğlu had written a scenario for the division of northern Iraq and Syria under Kurdish control and their unification with Turkey under a federal state.

The Gezi Park resistance began as an environmental protest, then transformed into an uprising by all anti-government groups, both legal and illegal, aiming to force the government, which had been in power for 11 years, to resign. The uprising spread to most cities in Turkey. The divisions between Atatürkist secularists, Islamists, and Kurdish nationalists, who did not trust each other, came to the surface. The Ergenekon trial verdict led to life sentences.

In Egypt, Chief of General Staff Sisi, who staged a US-backed coup, removed Morsi, who had Muslim Brotherhood roots, from office.

Our aircraft shot down a Syrian helicopter, then a plane, on the grounds of violating our airspace. In 2015, the PKK declared a "revolutionary people's war and autonomy" in Türkiye. For 20 days, they blocked an intercity road, forced the lowering of the flag at the 2nd Tactical Air Force Headquarters, and sent a message that the region was under PKK control. Kandil (Karayılan) escalated the events. Barzani's soldiers, with their weapons and Kurdistan flags, entered through Habur, passing through Silopi, Cizre, Nusaybin, and Suruç, and crossed into Syria via our Mürşitpınar border gate to provide aid to Kobani, which was under ISIS siege. In 2015, Russia entered the Middle East as a combat force, arriving in Syria. Subsequently, Turkish F-16s shot down a Russian warplane on the Syrian border.

In 2016, FETÖ soldiers attempted a coup against the government on July 15th. It was clear that the US was behind it. In Syria, the Turkish Armed Forces and Coalition Air Forces launched Operation Euphrates Shield. A military operation was launched to clear the Jarablus region of ISIS. Tank units entered from the Syrian border. Putin gave his approval. Syrian planes attacked Turkish soldiers. 3 martyrs; 10 wounded. The Pentagon began openly supplying weapons and ammunition to the PKK. The declarations of self-governance in Turkey, the trench warfare, the exploding bombs were all part of the US pushing the PKK towards statehood.

In 2017, in Northern Iraq, the Kurdistan Regional Government of Iraq held a unilateral independence referendum, boycotted by Turkmen and Arabs, with a 72% turnout. 91.83% voted yes. But it was frozen a month later due to pressure from Türkiye.

RTE had received the message. To gain acceptance from the US administration through the Jewish lobby and to influence Trump through Iran, he delivered a message during his Gulf trip: “Fighting separatist Persian nationalism.” RTE was advocating for the establishment of an independent Sunni state in northeastern Syria and western Iraq as the best alternative to ISIS.

The following year, the US, along with Britain and France, launched over a hundred missile strikes on Syria, alleging the use of chemical weapons. In the third phase of the Eastern Question, another significant move was made: the US Embassy in Jerusalem was opened. American spy pastor Brunson, who was on trial in Türkiye, was released under pressure.

In 2019, the US House of Representatives approved a bill officially recognizing the Armenian Genocide with a vote of 405 to 11. Operation Peace Spring began against PKK/YPG elements in northern Syria. Additional funding was provided to the Pentagon budget to establish a 65,000-strong army for the PYD/PKK in Syria. Trump stated that if Türkiye attacked the Kurds in Syria, they would economically cripple it. He told RTE, "As I have clearly stated before, and I repeat, if Turkey attempts to cross the borders I have defined with my great and unparalleled wisdom..." "If you take one step, I will completely destroy and obliterate the Turkish economy. (I've done it before!) Turkey, along with Europe and others, has to take custody of ISIS fighters and their families. The US has done far more than what could be expected of it, including completely taking over the ISIS caliphate. It's time for the countries in the region, some of which are very rich, to protect their own region. The US is great. If you do this right and humanely, history will write you well. If good things don't happen, they will forever see you as a devil. Don't play the tough guy. Don't be foolish! I'll call you later," he said. He also stated that he included a letter from Syrian Democratic Forces Commander Mazlum Kobani indicating his desire to negotiate with Turkey and his intention to make some concessions.

2020. The US killed Qassem Soleimani, commander of the Quds Force (outpost of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps), and Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, deputy commander of the Iraqi militant group Hashd al-Shaabi, in a drone strike. The Quds Force, with thousands of troops and support from Lebanese Hezbollah, had been fighting alongside Bashar al-Assad against al-Qaeda and ISIS in Syria since the beginning of the civil war. The Revolutionary Guard supported armed Shiite groups such as Hashd al-Shaabi and Kataib Hezbollah in Syria and Iraq.

Trump signed the Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA) package against Türkiye regarding the S-400 missile system, and Turkey was removed from the F-35 program.
         Israel and the UAE agreed to normalize relations. Similar agreements had been signed by Egypt (1979) and Jordan (1994). The UAE became the third country.
       2021. US President Biden called the events of 1915 a "genocide." For the so-called Armenian genocide, 30 countries issued laws, resolutions, or statements. The HDP statement: "This date became the day the Armenian Genocide began. The Armenian people were driven from their homeland, where they had lived for millennia, and were largely massacred. Anatolia was de-Christianized. As a result of the genocide, property and cultural assets changed hands by public will. Turkey has not confronted the Armenian Genocide for 106 years. The unaddressed crime has been carried to the present day. The great crime went unpunished, and discrimination and hate crimes became commonplace."

In 2023, Hamas launched a surprise attack on Israel from land, air, and sea during the Jewish holiday. They took some generals and officers hostage. 600 people died in Israel. Israel launched "Operation Iron Swords." Fuel was poured on the fire in the Middle East.

In 2024, the Iranian consulate in Damascus was destroyed in an Israeli air strike, killing numerous diplomats, 2 generals, and 7 officers. Iran launched 200 drones and missiles at Israel. Opposition forces entered Damascus, the Ba'ath regime was overthrown in Syria, and President Bashar al-Assad fled to Moscow.

2025. Following Öcalan's call for the PKK to lay down its arms and disband the organization, Kandil declared a ceasefire. Erdoğan met with Trump, who was re-elected for a second term, paving the way for the İmamoğlu operation.

Israel bombed critical Iranian targets and individuals. Iran retaliated with missiles against Israel. The US entered the war directly. B-2 aircraft dropped GBU-57 bunker-busting bombs on Iran's Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan nuclear facilities. US experts believed Iran had secretly moved more than 400 kilograms of highly enriched uranium, enough for 10 nuclear weapons, to a secret location.

The Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned Israeli airstrikes targeting numerous military facilities in Syria, stating that Israel was the "greatest threat" to peace in West Asia.

At this point, the Israeli-US duo established Kurdistan in Iraq. It cleansed Gaza. It attacked Lebanon, where Hezbollah was based. It razed half of Beirut to the ground. With Türkiye's support, it overthrew the Assad regime in Syria. It drove Russia and Iran out of the region. It occupied southern Syria. It destroyed the Syrian military force, except for the YPG. Now it is attacking Iran.

The Iran issue deserves special attention. There are pros and cons...
The elements of the Axis of Resistance have been significantly weakened.

The 39% voter turnout in the 2024 elections showed that the majority does not support the religious regime. The regime is fighting to protect its own oligarchic power more than for the security of Iran.

The Iran-Saudi or Shia-Sunni animosity is as important in the Middle East as the Palestinian issue. Iran has experienced an intense and critical 46 years, including war with Iraq, tensions with Türkiye and the Afghan (Taliban) regime, and isolation due to US sanctions. It has become an Eastern country cut off from its West and the Middle East. But the division of Iraq and the Syrian civil war gave Iran the opportunity to create a Russian-backed Shiite crescent. Shiite organizations became its most important elements. In 2016, Russian jets took off from Iran and struck targets in Syria. For the first time since World War II, a foreign country was using Iranian bases. Russia and Iran wanted to prevent the division of Syria. Northern Syria and Northern Iraq would be given to Iran's control, and the region would become the epicenter of the Arab world. It didn't happen. It couldn't export its regime to the surrounding areas; it had to protect and defend its regime.

Even if Trump declares "victory" and withdraws his forces, Iran has suffered a major blow. The destruction caused by missiles fired at neighboring countries will further fuel Iran's animosity with the Arab world.

Iran claims that the Jaish al-Adl terrorist organization is using Pakistani territory to carry out its attacks, leading to diplomatic tensions with Pakistan. This organization, which combines Sunni Islamism with ethnic Baloch nationalism, is among the elements seeking to weaken state authority in Sistan and Baluchistan, one of Iran's most troubled regions.

The other enemy of Shiite Tehran, the Sunni Jihadist ISIS, is lurking in the shadows; if state and internal security weaken, opportunities could arise for ISIS.

Iran has begun deporting Afghans, citing economic burden, and accuses some Afghans of spying for Israel.

Lebanon has banned the military activities of Hezbollah, which Iran uses against Israel, and deemed its security role illegal. Hezbollah may also be forced into conflict with the Lebanese army. This could trigger a civil war in Lebanon that would benefit Israel.

The Iranian Rial is the second most depreciated currency in the world after the Lebanese Pound. Years of drought, record temperatures, low rainfall, and decades of mismanagement have brought Iran to the brink of environmental collapse.

In 2017, seventy-five percent of the population concentrated along the eastern borders of Saudi Arabia and the UAE were Shia, and the vast majority were poor. In Saudi Arabia, the Hasa region, stretching from the Kuwait border to the Qatar border, was predominantly Shia. Oil was there, and seventy percent of the workforce was Shia. The harsh Saudi Sunni Wahhabism heavily encouraged Sunni migration to Hasa. In the Kingdom of Bahrain, the ruling Sunni minority was trying to rein in the Shia majority, which was supported by Iran.

Iran's historical and cultural heritage is significant. Five of the world's top 500 universities are in Iran.

The Israeli-US duo wants to embolden the opposition. But the label of being an “Israel-US puppet” and civilian casualties, including young children, are holding them back. For 40 years, Iran has been using international balances to get out of crises. Iran hasn't deployed, or couldn't deploy, all its capabilities. For example, the Houthis in Yemen didn't close the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. Is this weakness, or a long-term escalation strategy? It will soon become clear.

Iran possesses the world's largest proven natural gas reserves, estimated at 34 trillion cubic meters. Enough to meet the EU's demand for decades. Europe is striving to reduce its dependence on Russian gas and find alternative suppliers. The new Iran could be part of this equation.

The Shah's exiled son, Reza Pahlavi, is being polished. The exiled Iranian Royal Family has added a Jewish son-in-law to its ranks. Princess Aman Pahlavi married American technology investor Bradley Sherman in a lavish wedding in Paris.

Despite the removal of Iran's religious leader Ali Khamenei and some high-ranking officials, political chaos did not ensue, and youth and women's movements failed in their attempts to replace the regime with one loyal to the US and Israel, similar to Venezuela.

The fourth week of the war is over. The US, in the same quagmire it experienced in Vietnam, Iraq, and Afghanistan, is superior in combat but appears to be losing the war. Iran, with its inexpensive drones and ballistic missiles, is causing significant trouble for the US armed forces. Iran's "mosaic defense" allows commanders to continue the life-or-death struggle without needing orders from central command. A ground offensive against Iran could lead to very serious problems.

Türkiye opposes Iran's pursuit of nuclear weapons. It supports Iran's territorial integrity and the continuation of its regime. However, after the examples of Iraq and Syria, we may have a neighbor that is militarily weakened but more determined and ruthless in its pursuit of nuclear weapons. Irregular migration and threats from the PKK-PJAK could destabilize us. In addition to our energy and food problems, inflation may increase.

Iranian ballistic missiles and drones have struck not only Israel but also the Gulf economies and eroded trust in the US. Iran is targeting Israeli civil society. Rising oil and natural gas prices have impacted all economies. An energy war has begun. After the war ends, new restrictions may be imposed on the Strait of Hormuz. Repairing the damage from the war in the region will create new opportunities. Weakness is clearly visible in Europe, but it still hopes to get its share of the pie. News and commentary suggesting " Türkiye is next" are leaking from Western and Russian media. The attempt to incite rebellion among Iranian Kurds has failed. Now, Azerbaijan, which has friendly relations with Israel, is being pressured to engage in ground warfare against Iran, which is effectively supporting Armenia. The possibility of sabotage to the Baku-Ceyhan oil pipeline is being discussed.

We cannot correctly assess developments without looking at the third phase of the Eastern Question from the perspective of Christian Zionism and the Greater Israel Project.

They said: “We told you in Lausanne that this wouldn’t stay with you. Even after 100 years, we haven’t forgotten. When the Cold War ended, we opened the old books and decided that it was time to punish the Turks. We had already prepared the groundwork for this.”

After the 9/11 attacks, the US abandoned its strategy of creating and supporting moderate Islam to combat radical political Islam. It began to compromise with radical political Islam. It abandoned Afghanistan to the Taliban. In Syria, it supported HTS.

The disagreement between Trump and Netanyahu, who is evading arrest warrants from the International Criminal Court, is increasing, but they will risk everything to stay in power. Otherwise, they will face trial. However, if the plan works correctly, it will clear the field for Israel. The occupation of Gaza, the West Bank, and the Golan Heights will be accepted, Hezbollah will be greatly weakened, and the PYD/YPG will be strengthened east of the Euphrates in Syria.

Türkiye's will be satisfied west of the Euphrates. Neutral policies in favor of Israel will continue. It will bow to the power of the Jewish lobby. It will return to the US camp. Kurdish separatism and Islamism will remain on the agenda. The AKP administration, unable to fix the economy and income distribution, and unable to prevent corruption, will increase pressure on the CHP with the judicial stick. Independent media is already under threat. The parliament and bureaucracy are merely for show. Democracy is declining even globally. It is only remembered during elections.

The much-trusted BRICS and SCO have become a painful example of the failure of solidarity in the Global South. China, Russia, and India, in particular, failed to provide the expected support to Iran. Each focused on its own interests, as in the Russia-Ukraine War. The UN, NATO, the EU, and the G7 are equally unsuccessful.

The third phases of the Eastern Question are accelerating under the leadership of the Global Plunder Organization, Zionism, and Christian Zionism, all of which possess immense financial power and the ability to manipulate and increase it. But what matters is not merely the desire for this process, but its realization. Will it succeed this time, or will it fall asleep again for the fourth phase? Will the geopolitical chaos created by a declining US trigger a new Cold War? Or will a new concept, the "Western Question," take its place in world geopolitics?