A demagogue’s appeal for dialogue

At a time when global tensions are already dangerously high, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan took the stage at the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation’s foreign ministers’ summit in Istanbul to accuse Israel of sabotaging U.S.-Iran nuclear talks and shunning diplomacy. 

Yet for a leader whose own democratic record is riddled with authoritarianism, censorship, and alignment with pariah states, Erdogan’s sermon on dialogue and peace rings hollow.

While calling for restraint and diplomacy, Erdogan’s government continues to clamp down on civil liberties, jail political opponents, and suppress independent media. Turkey has consistently ranked among the worst countries for press freedom, with journalists routinely arrested under vague anti-terror laws. 

The judiciary lacks independence, dissent is criminalized, and elections are marred by irregularities. The president, ruling by decree under a heavily centralized system, has turned Turkey into a textbook example of democratic backsliding.

Beyond its borders, Erdogan’s government has cozied up to regimes and groups considered international outcasts. From warm ties with Iran and Russia to support for Hamas and other Islamist factions, Ankara’s foreign policy frequently contradicts its professed commitment to peace. 

Its actions in Syria, Libya, and the Caucasus have stoked instability rather than resolving it.

Against this backdrop, Erdogan’s attempt to position himself as a moral authority on Middle East diplomacy is not only ironic — it is disingenuous. 

Accusing Israel of undermining peace talks while ignoring Tehran’s own role in regional provocations is selective outrage at best. 

Moreover, lecturing others on avoiding wider conflict while fanning flames through inflammatory rhetoric undermines any credibility Turkey might still claim on the world stage.

The reality is simple: peace in the region requires serious, credible actors. And Erdogan, who has made a habit of weaponizing foreign policy for domestic political gain, is far from being one.