Turkish influence is growing and creeping towards areas that were formerly under the control of the Ottoman Empire at a time when the world is currently mired in political and security turmoil, which creates a fertile ground for the plans of the Turkish president, who has been investing in chaos and playing on the feelings of enthusiasm among Muslims to evoke the caliphate thesis.
Afrasianet - A 12-year-old map recently shown by one of the Turkish TV channels showed Turkey's areas of influence in the year 2050 as extending from the southern Caucasus to the northern coast of the Mediterranean (Greece and Cyprus) and the southern coast to include Libya, the Maghreb countries, Egypt and the Gulf states, the extent of the Turkish president's ambitions Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s expansionism, especially in light of his adherence to his military interventions on more than one conflict front and his investment in turmoil and wars to achieve false dreams of restoring an empty Ottoman glory.
The discovery of the map raised fears of the growing colonialism in Turkey, especially after the expansion of military interventions since 2017, after its incursion into northern Syria, and then announcing an agreement that would enable it to gain access to the Libyan territories, which is an important gateway to North Africa and the brown continent, and what it contains of various wealth made Erdogan’s saliva And its military operations in northern Iraq under the pretext of persecuting the Kurds and planning to engage in the Yemeni war, then intervening in southeastern Europe to support Azerbaijan in its war against Armenia, and Baku’s victory in the battle, which increased the Turkish president’s ambitions to expand even more. Erdogan aspires, out of nostalgia for the glories of the Ottoman Empire, to achieve dreams that do not seem realistic, but often seem illusions in restoring an empire that has perished, but this does not diminish the danger of the growing Turkish influence and Ankara's plans to expand as far as possible, especially in the areas rich in hydrocarbons, given what It has achieved so far in terms of progress in Syria and Libya, advancing towards the southern Caucasus, and achievements in the waters of the eastern Mediterranean, which are disputed with Greece.
Ankara is seeking to capitalize on Azerbaijan’s victory during the war with Armenia, especially after America, during the previous administration’s rule, underestimated the dangers of increasing Turkish influence, as Baku’s victory made Turkey salivate to expand its expansion in all directions to restore the lands of the Ottoman Caliphate.
The new relationship between Ankara and Baku sounded alarm bells after Erdogan descended with all his diplomatic weight in support of Azerbaijan and praised its victory in the Nagorno-Karabakh region and shared victory celebrations with it on its lands. He said literally, “The battle will not end with the Azerbaijani authorities regaining their lands.
The struggle in the political and military fields will now continue over the many other fronts. Despite the convictions of some political locals that the aim of publishing the alleged Turkish map is an attempt to improve Erdogan’s shaky image and restore his declining popularity, as well as inciting the nationalist enthusiasm of the Turks, the danger of the Turkish president’s tactics, who is determined to revive dreams of restoring Ottoman glories among his citizens, to gain popular support for his military interventions, should not be underestimated.
Its negative repercussions on Turkey's international image, its repercussions on the Turkish economy, and the promising losses it left in the ranks of the army.
The publication of the map review in another place, no less important, aims to test the regional responses to Turkey's expansionist ambitions and colonial schemes with a desire to revive the old empire.
Although they consider the issue of the map's publication as an internal Turkish game rather than a danger that could occur in the near future, politicians and analysts have stated that this map, which includes the countries of the North Caucasus as well as the Crimea, threatens Russian interests.
The Iranians also felt that the Turkish sphere of influence would surround their country from the north, south and west and threaten its national strategic interests. After the map appeared, Andrei Krasov, deputy head of the Russian parliament's defense committee, said, "If the Turks want to test the strength of the Russian spirit and our weapons, let them try." For his part, Vladimir Jabarov, a member of the Russian Federation Council, considered that "such information is displayed deliberately to see reactions, but we will not pay attention to that, and we have normal relations with Turkey, and we are partners in many areas." While Iranian officials did not comment on Turkish plans, Tehran sought last year to strengthen its military presence in the Caspian Sea and establish close maritime relations with the countries bordering the Caspian Basin (Russia, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan). The Iranians may consider the broadcast of Turkey's virtual map of influence for the year 2050, the latest episode of the Turkish series of provocations, especially after Erdogan recited a nationalist poem calling for the annexation of two Iranian provinces of Azerbaijani origin to Azerbaijan.
In addition, the Turkish state radio and television service published a map on Instagram that depicts Iran's oil-rich Khuzestan province separate from Iran.