American Secretary of State Marco Rubio expressed concern on Friday when asked about ongoing protests against Islamist strongman Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in Turkey, calling the violence “disturbing” and confirming he addressed the situation with Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan the day before.
Rubio is the latest international figure to weigh in on the chaos in Turkey’s largest cities as a result of the Erdoğan regime abruptly arresting the mayor of Istanbul, Ekrem İmamoğlu, last week on dubious corruption charges. İmamoğlu, of the opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), is the opposition’s most popular leader and widely considered Erdoğan’s closest rival in the upcoming Turkish presidential elections, which must occur by 2028. The CHP responded by formalizing his nomination for president, despite the long time frame ahead, while Turkish secularists have taken to the streets by the thousands to demand his freedom and greater respect for the rule of law in the country.
The most iconic image of the protests so far has been footage from Wednesday night showing a protester in a Pikachu costume fleeing police. The CHP published the video with a message welcoming Pikachu to “the resistance.”
Erdoğan himself has accused the protesters of “terrorism” and dismissed CHP complaints about the arrest as a tantrum in response to not being in power. The unrest has continued throughout the week, resulting in nearly 2,000 arrests, including of international journalists, as of Friday.
Turkish Justice Minister Yılmaz Tunç announced on Friday that the courts had freed seven journalists, including some affiliated with international agencies such as the Agence France-Presse (AFP), after they were detained while covering the protests.
“It is imperative to scrutinize the specifics of these cases. No one wishes for journalists to be detained,” Tunç asserted, but added that he did not have “purview” to analyze each case individually and needed to give the courts time to process those arrested.
While the situation remains largely a domestic issue at press time — Rubio was careful in his remarks on Friday to emphasize that the United States is merely privately expressing concern for an ally, not condemning Erdoğan — there is growing evidence that fellow NATO countries and Turkey’s European neighbors are feeling apprehensive about the violent scenes of police repression from Istanbul, Ankara, Izmir, and other major cities.
Rubio delicately approached the issue after conversing with Fidan on Thursday. Asked about the arrests of journalists in Turkey, he clarified that he had raised the topic.
“We’ve expressed that we’re concerned. We don’t like to see the direction that’s going,” Rubio said. “It’s an ally. It’s a partner in NATO. Anytime you have instability on the ground, you don’t like to see it.”
Rubio noted that, given the friendly relations with Turkey, “we expect to express them [concerns] at least privately at the outset, certainly in a new administration when we’re trying to establish relations.” The secretary of state added that the images from Turkey were “disturbing to see” but that Trump “had a very good working relationship with President Erdoğan in the first administration” and intended to keep relations positive.
Turkey’s least friendly NATO ally, Greece, appeared to indicate displeasure with Erdoğan’s repression of secularist opposition this week. On Tuesday, the Greek government announced that it had postponed a meeting planned between the Turkish leader and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis. The leaders were unofficially expected to meet on April 8.
“Given these developments, it is becoming difficult to organize the High-Level Cooperation Council between Greece and Türkiye immediately,” government spokesman Pavlos Marinakis told reporters this week, referring to the protests around İmamoğlu’s arrest.
“We are monitoring the developments in Türkiye. The situation remains fluid and concerning,” Marinakis reportedly added. “Our stance on İmamoğlu has not changed. Concessions on the rule of law and political freedoms are unacceptable, and convincing answers are needed for any concessions made.”
Separately, the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe on Thursday issued a statement demanding that Turkey free İmamoğlu and cease using state violence on protesters.
“The Congress expresses deep concern over clear signs of degradation of the working conditions of local and regional elected representatives and the weakening of fundamental freedoms and the rule of law in Türkiye,” the statement read, using the preferred Turkish spelling of the country’s name.
“The Congress has repeatedly condemned the practice of dismissals of elected mayors and the appointment of trustees since 2016, calling for its abolition,” it added.
Also asked about the situation, French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday weighed in, lamenting the “systemic nature” of anti-Islamist repression in Turkey.
“Turkey needs Europe, and Europe needs Turkey. But it needs a Turkey that assumes its responsibilities for European security, [and] continues on its democratic path by respecting the commitments it has made,” he asserted.
The unease with the domestic situation in Turkey arrives at a time in which Erdoğan has amassed nearly unprecedented international political cloud. As both a NATO member state and a friend of the government of Russia, Turkey has become a pivotal mediator between Russia and Ukraine as Moscow continues its quest to violently conquer much of the Ukrainian territory. Turkey is also one of the most powerful armies in NATO and has leveraged its position straddling Europe and Asia to improve its relations with communist China, which continues to seek greater influence in the Middle East.
During remarks on Thursday, Erdoğan, apparently addressing these concerns, claimed that the world was currently experiencing a rise in “hate speech, racism, and fanaticism” that his government was attempting to deter.
“We as Türkiye have the experience to allow different faiths, cultures and identities to live together in peace for centuries,” Erdoğan said, failing to address the ongoing persecution of Christians and members of the Hizmet Islamist movement in the country, in addition to policies silencing Kurdish political movements.
The Turkish newspaper Hurriyet added that Erdoğan promised to “disallow those who intend to bring the recurring social tensions in the region” into Turkey, without elaborating.
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