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Turkologist and Doctor of History Ruben Melkonyan says Türkiye is seeking a more active role in the Palestinian issue, positioning itself not merely as an observer or adviser, but as a decision-maker, participant, or mediator with broad powers.
He views Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’s recent visit to Türkiye as part of Ankara’s broader policy of expanding its diplomatic and political involvement in the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.
In an interview with Armenpress, Melkonyan addressed the meeting between Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Mahmoud Abbas and, in this context, the question of what role Türkiye plays in resolving the Palestinian-Israeli issue.
According to Melkonyan, for quite some time now, Türkiye, and President Erdoğan in particular, has assumed the image of an advocate for resolving the most important issues of the Muslim world, presenting itself as a supporter of Islamic solidarity. Therefore, as a claimant to this role, Türkiye naturally should pay special attention to the Palestinian issue, both institutionally and, in Erdoğan’s case, personally. According to Melkonyan, this is precisely what accounts for the political messages and Erdoğan’s caring attitude toward the Palestinian leader.
“This should also necessarily be placed in the context of the recently intensified Turkish-Israeli relations. As a state, Türkiye has had a special interest in the Palestinian issue for a long time and has made various attempts to participate in its resolution. In general, the Turkish side has taken various steps to become a factor in the context of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, which have not always been successful, but Türkiye has made such attempts periodically. Accordingly, as Türkiye’s reputation and influence, as well as Erdoğan’s political and personal weight, have grown, Türkiye’s involvement and participation in the Palestinian issue have also increased, and this has both behind-the-scenes diplomatic and demonstrative, visible manifestations,” Melkonyan said.
The expert recalled that the most striking example of this was the events of 2010, when Türkiye sent humanitarian aid to Palestine by ship, which was attacked by Israeli special forces, turning into a major Turkish-Israeli conflict, up to and including the restriction of diplomatic relations.
“An ordinary Palestinian, an ordinary Muslim, may see how Türkiye is making efforts to help its Muslim brothers, but this is also a populist method that Türkiye (especially Erdoğan) skillfully employs. The visit of the Palestinian leader is one of the combined examples of the visible and behind-the-scenes methods of Turkish diplomacy. It did not begin recently; rather, it is a specific example of faithfully following the established line of Türkiye’s state policy,” Melkonyan said.
Referring to Erdoğan’s statement that Ankara will continue to resolutely defend the Palestinian issue on all platforms and support the establishment of an independent and sovereign Palestinian state based on the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital, Melkonyan emphasized that this is one of the constituent parts of the conflict, and Türkiye’s approach accordingly has two dimensions.
“The first is the de jure, or legal, dimension, when the Turkish side refers to the relevant international regulations and the UN decision regarding the creation of two states, while the second dimension is that through this step Türkiye declares that it will make every effort in every possible way to ensure the de jure establishment of the State of Palestine. In other words, Türkiye’s populist steps are combined with various legal and political attributes. When we consider the statements of the Turkish side, it is obvious that they belong to different genres: they include populist statements appealing to Muslims, as well as legal references and threatening statements containing a military subtext,” Melkonyan said.
In his view, against this entire backdrop, Türkiye assumes a role as if it is defending internationally accepted decisions and promoting the idea of a sovereign Palestinian state, but in Türkiye’s case, this is a pronounced dual approach, because, on the one hand, Türkiye defends various internationally accepted documents, while, on the other hand, it is the author of the occupation of the occupied part of Northern Cyprus.
“In other words, Türkiye is the patron and founder of the unrecognized state—the Republic of Northern Cyprus. Therefore, its image as a tireless defender of international documents and various international resolutions is significantly shaken. This is Türkiye’s combined policy, which, depending on expediency, takes on different roles, but the most important thing is that its hyperactive diplomacy is in no way interrupted, and it constantly tries to assume an active role in international and regional conflicts, especially in conflicts where there is an underlying context of protecting the interests of Muslim populations. In this way, Türkiye positions itself as the leader and defender of the Muslim world, and derives its actions from this,” the Turkologist said.
Addressing the question of why not all Muslim countries demonstrate solidarity in resolving the Palestinian issue, Melkonyan emphasized that among Islamic and Arab studies specialists, the term “Islamic world” has always been problematic, because, according to experts, it does not exist as a single, unified political entity.
“Different Muslim states try to advance their own interests and are involved in various alliances, including with states toward which certain Muslim countries have, to put it mildly, hostile relations. For example, several Arab countries have good allied relations with the United States, while Iran has hostile relations with the same United States. Therefore, expecting a joint political decision by Muslim states is not particularly realistic, because political, economic, and strategic interests are more predominant. Even if these states vote in favor of some resolution or statement related to Palestine when voting on various documents, this does not at all mean that they can move from a statement to action,” the Turkologist said.
According to Melkonyan, Erdoğan also skillfully uses all the elements of populism and shows that, although Türkiye also has interests and relations with Israel and the United States, the interest of Muslim solidarity is important to him. Thus, disregarding his warm allied relations with various countries, he clearly takes a position in defense of Palestine.
“Türkiye, in the person of Erdoğan, positions itself as a defender of genuine Muslim values and Muslim solidarity, while being fully aware that there is no unified Muslim political decision. On this issue, Erdoğan, on the one hand, demonstrates the absence of unity, but, on the other hand, tries to use this absence for the benefit of his and his country’s political image,” the Turkologist said.