Tũrkish Pulse

by Martin Aslan During the Ottoman period, Palestine was under Turkish rule for 400 years. After the collapse of the Ottoman Empire in 1923 and a period under British mandate, a Partition Plan was voted by the UN General Assembly on 29 November 1947 for the creation of a Jewish state and an Arab state. By rejecting this decision, Palestine came into conflict with the Hebrew state. The Palestinian question has become a symbol, a pretext that allows Muslim countries to amplify their anti-Western rhetoric. Palestine under ottoman influence  The seizure of the Caliphate in 1517 marked a turning point in the history of the Ottoman Empire. 1517 was also the year in which Palestine became subject to the empire. Once Caliph, Suleiman the Magnificent had the Dome of the Rock and the city walls of Jerusalem restored between 1538 and 1535. In 1541, he closed the Golden Gate to prevent the Jewish Messiah from entering. As the Ottoman caliphate became hegemonic, non-Muslims had a subordinate st...

(photo: Arab News) by Martin Aslan As the attack on October 7 of this year burst out in extreme violence on both sides, it seems necessary to look back on a long lasting conflict that worries the international opinion like no other. During the Ottoman period, Palestine was under Turkish ruling for 400 years. After the collapse of the Ottoman empire and under the British mandate, a Partition Plan was voted by the UN General Assembly on 29 November 1947 for the creation of a Jewish state and an Arab state. By rejecting this decision, Palestine entered a long lasting conflict with the Jewish state. Now a symbol, the Palestinian issue has become a token for some Muslim countries to amplify their anti Western rhetoric.  A throwback to the 16th century – Ottoman ruling: 1517 is a turning point for the Ottoman Empire: Suleiman the Magnificent takes the Calif after conquering Egypt and within the same year, Palestine is falls under Ottoman control. From 1535 to 1541, the Emperor orders the...

by Martin Aslan In a conflict, the first actions taken by belligerents are first and foremost economic in nature. The aim is to weaken the opponent before a potential military engagement or better, to avoid it. The efficiency of these complex actions depends on the coherence of the countries involved, each of which must respect the decisions taken. The conflict in Ukraine is an example of a series of economic sanctions being applied by many countries to weaken Vladimir Putin's Russia. In this case, external military intervention by NATO in Ukraine is not considered given the risk of triggering a major conflict. Economic sanctions against Russia as part of the war in Ukraine Following Russia's first intervention in Ukraine, which led to the annexation of Crimea in 2014, Moscow was targeted by a first wave of economic sanctions. These sanctions led to a fall of the rouble and a cost of $40 billion to Russia. Combined with the fall in crude oil prices, the earnings foregone by Rus...

by Martin Aslan To approach Africa in a general way would be incorrect. Indeed, 55 states share a territory of 30 million km² on two hemispheres. Climate, culture and history of each country are therefore very different. Although its environment could be considered as inhospitable in a health or climatic point of view. Africa remains very attractive to many nations: European countries, China, Russia and Turkiye. After slavery and a colonial period, exploitation of natural resources is still the main focus of the continent. A continent full of resources. Africa owns 30% of the world's mineral reserves: 75% of platinum reserves, 50% of diamond and chromium reserves, 20% of gold and uranium reserves, 85% of phosphate reserves, over 50% of cobalt reserves, 33% of bauxite reserves. Africa possesses also coal, copper, iron ore reserves as well as 10% of the world's oil reserves and 8% of natural gas reserves. Gold mine of Sambrado - Burkina Faso Raw materials represent 60% of Africa...

Loreen from Sweden, winner of 2023 edition / Sarah Louise Bennet _EBU by Martin Aslan Last week on Saturday night, took place the Eurovision song contest. Loreen from Sweden has won for the second time. It was also the 10th year since TRT announced Türkiye would no longer participate. And yet, Turkish public used to love this contest and its flamboyant show. So why did Türkiye left the contest, and will it ever come back? The Eurovision : The European song contest is an annual song competition. It was first held in 1956 in the first years of the European construction after World War II. Originally participants were mere European countries, then new countries joined such as Australia, Israel or Azerbaijan. Türkiye first participated in 1975 and even won once in 2003 with Sertab Erener’s song « Everyway that I can ».  The rules are simple: each participating country submit an original 3-minutes song to be performed live. A jury composed of professionals grades each song, granting a c...

  by Martin Aslan The global decline of Democracy In January, thousands of Israelis protested against their new far-right government, fearing its plans would weaken democratic institutions and checks and balances. This reflects a broader global trend: trust in democracy is declining, yet authoritarian regimes have not proven more effective. The global retreat of democracy Democracy is defined by representative government, fundamental rights, checks on power, impartial administration, and civic participation. However, in recent years, democracy has stagnated, with half of democratic nations backsliding. Repressive regimes are tightening control, and the number of countries shifting toward authoritarianism has more than doubled in six years. Today, half of all nations are experiencing democratic decline. Democratic erosion in Europe While democracy remains dominant in Europe, it has weakened, even in high-performing countries. Poland and Hungary are experiencing significant democrati...

by Martin Aslan The collapse of the Ottoman Empire gave way to a new religious base embodied by the Muslim Brotherhood founded by the Egyptian Hassan el-Banna. This movement, considered a terrorist group by the Arab Republic of Egypt, came to power in 2012 following the Arab Spring. Türkiye lent its support to the movement represented by Mohamed Morsi. The Muslim Brotherhood is an influential movement in Muslim lands whose objective is the restoration of a caliphate. Türkiye's shady dealings with the Muslim Brotherhood muddy the waters and make it difficult to understand Türkiye’s relations with its neighbours and allies. The sources of a new religious era Until then dominated by the Ottoman Empire, the Muslim world underwent a religious rupture at the beginning of the 20th century. The abolition of the Ottoman Caliphate in 1924 by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk gave way to the creation of a movement to combat ‘Western secularism and the blind imitation of the European model’.  This was Has...