In a Bid to Leave no Room for Washington’s Meddling, Russia, Iran and Turkey are Closing Ranks

Author: Martin Berger

Column: Politics

Region: Middle East

Washington’s recent obsession with unilateral sanctions and tariffs as a tool of choice for approaching a wide range of complex and diverse international challenges makes it a lame hegemon. The stubborn determination of Western think tanks to police the world inevitably leads to former allies of the US to reconsider the value of bilateral ties they used to enjoy with Washington. As a result, new political, economic and military alliances are emerging all across the globe, all leading to a gradual isolation of the United States.

Those tariffs that the Trump administration introduced against its EU partners have inflicted an extensive amount of seemingly irreparable damage to Europe’s approach to the US. German minister of foreign affairs, Heiko Maas has announced at the recent annual meeting of the heads of German diplomatic missions that the recent sudden onset of American sanctions against Russia and China, along with a number of other trade restricting measures have all affected Europe big time.

And Washington is now sowing the seeds of its short-sighted policies, as the intention of Beijing to support Russia and Iran in the determination to assist the Syrian armed forces in their assault on Idlib is being described as a “nightmare scenario” for the US and its allies in the Persian Gulf by the Austrian Contra Magazin.

Further still, international players remain mindful that each one of them can fall a victim of so-called “color revolutions” that Washington continues orchestrating all across the globe through a massive network of seemingly independent NGOs. This forces the states that Washington has handpicked for discrimination on the international stage to close their ranks, while working in close cooperation with each other.

At the global level, there is a clear confrontation between the US and Russia. At the regional level there’s signs of direct military confrontation between Russia and the United States in Syria, with Turkey and Iran also being involved in this military conflict. At the same time, Washington regularly threatens to wage war on Tehran, while Ankara formally remains a part of the Western coalition that is allegedly fighting ISIS. At the same time, Russia, the United States and Turkey are coordinating their actions in Syrian through military liaisons. That is why it would only be reasonable to assume that similar coordination is established between Russia, Turkey and Iran.

A long list of dubious accusations voiced by the West against Moscow and Ankara has pushed them closer together, including the desire to teach the West a lesson and shared interests in dealing with the regional security threat.

The recent meeting of Russia’s Vladimir Putin with Turkish foreign minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu; Turkish minister of national defense, Hulusi Akar; and the head of Turkey’s national intelligence organization, Hakan Fidan, resulted in the latter three statesmen underlining Ankara’s commitment to the development of its bilateral ties with Russia, in spite of the angry threats being voiced in Washington over this decision.

Washington’s muted reaction to the recent coup attempt against Turkey that the latter blames on the US, its refusal to extradite the suspect behind the coup attempt known as Fethullah Gulen, constant threats linked to Ankara’s intention to purchase Russian S-400 top of the line anti-aircraft weapon system are all not just pushing Ankara away from the United States, but from NATO as well. This makes Turkey Russia’s natural ally in matters of security in the broadest sense of the word. Turkey will no longer cooperate with NATO and the US, since they represent an avid threat to Turkey’s current political system. As a result, Turkey is becoming increasingly alienated from everything NATO-related. But this is not the worst possible scenario for Washington, since the absolute worst scenario is Turkey becoming a full-blown anti-NATO country, while still formally being a part of the alliance. 

The aggressive and illogical behavior of US President Donald Trump in his approach to Russia, Turkey and Iran has resulted in a resistance movement being built by those three countries, that is being joined rapidly by states that remain critical of Washington’s approach to international challenges.

Against this background, during the upcoming summit of the leaders of Russia, Turkey and Iran, which will be held on September 7 in Tabriz, Azerbaijan, concerned voices can be heard not only across the US, but in a number of Western European countries, as it clearly shows that a force has emerged in the region that is ready to tame America’s irrepressible appetite for conquest.

Iran, Turkey and Russia are creating a new economic and political space that will benefit the region and leave no room for Washington’s influence.

As it’s been noted by CNN, the West cannot afford losing Turkey to Russia and Iran, while adding that Turkey would no longer view the US as a reliable partner and strategic ally. According to this media source, Turkey would most likely seek to shift the center of gravity away from the West and toward Russia, Iran and Eurasia.

In its attempts to inflict the maximum possible damage to Russia, Turkey and Iran, Washington and its allies have already unleashed a wide range of strategies, including sanctions, disinformation campaigns aimed at discrediting the actions these countries, along with attempts to stir internal unrest. In this context, it’s particularly curious that London has recently appointed Rob Macaire as UK ambassador to Tehran, while this man is being described as a diplomat with a military and intelligence background.

However, it must be recognized that the level of rapprochement achieved by Russia, Turkey and Iran leaves no room for Washington’s aggressive meddling in regional affairs. Such a coalition between key regional players seems to be the only way of bringing a lasting peace to the Middle East. And this, in particular, has been confirmed by the results of recent talks between Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and Turkey’s president Recep Tayyip Erdogan, during which the parties discussed the development of bilateral ties against the backdrop of America’s aggressive steps in the region.

Martin Berger is a freelance journalist and geopolitical analyst, exclusively for the online magazine “New Eastern Outlook.” 

https://journal-neo.org/2018/09/05/in-a-bid-to-leave-no-room-for-washingtons-meddling-russia-iran-and-turkey-are-closing-ranks/
https://journal-neo.org/2018/09/05/in-a-bid-to-leave-no-room-for-washingtons-meddling-russia-iran-and-turkey-are-closing-ranks/