The US’s plan for the Middle East and Turkey’s future*

The ‘Terror-Free Turkey’ process, launched by the AKP and MHP, is entering a new phase, having also opened the way for debates on a new constitution. At the outset of the process, we emphasised the importance of silencing the guns and abandoning the policy of seeking solutions through violence. Although there is no genuine democratic resolution process at stake here, it would certainly not be the right stance to oppose developments such as a transition to a non-violent environment and the release of detainees.

However, we also highlighted the danger that the process, once launched, could be turned into an opportunity for the Palace regime to entrench itself in power. At this stage, it has become abundantly clear that, aside from the fact that the process has no connection to a democratic solution to the Kurdish question or the democratisation of the country, Turkey is facing the imposition of a reactionary regime as an extension of America’s Middle East policies, and that the ‘Terror-Free Turkey’ process has been brought to the fore as part of this. Therefore, whilst we maintain the views we have held from the outset regarding the resolution of the Kurdish issue, it has become a matter of the utmost importance to adopt a clear stance and mount a struggle against the US’s attempts to reshape Turkey in line with its regional policies.

∗∗∗ Following the massive destruction wrought by the US in the Middle East, a new order is being established. The wave of attacks launched by Israel against Gaza, the surrender of the Assad regime in Syria within a matter of days without a single shot being fired, the neutralisation of Hezbollah and Hamas, and the encirclement of Iran are all part of this process of establishing a new order. In America’s new Middle Eastern order, Turkey and Saudi Arabia are positioned as central countries alongside Israel.

Through the Mecca Pact, this has taken the form of a US-NATO-affiliated military alliance that also encompasses Pakistan. The American plan to reshape the Middle East is proceeding step by step. So much so that the SDF, which has been a party to the civil war in Syria for over a decade, was dismantled in as little as a year and integrated into the jihadist HTS regime.

It should not be considered impossible that steps towards establishing a regime in Turkey similar to that in Syria could be brought to the fore. Whilst US Ambassador T. Barrack describes this regime as a ‘benevolent monarchy’ or ‘strong leadership’, there is talk of an ethnic and sectarian-based transformation centred on Political Islam.

The appointment of Colani as President and Mazlum Abdi as Vice-President in Syria also reveals the sources of inspiration behind Bahçeli’s proposals for a Kurdish and an Alevi Vice-President. ∗∗∗ A free future can be built together with this country’s workers, labourers, women, young people and all the oppressed, that is, through the joint democratic struggle of the peoples of Turkey. It is essential that we build a process in which the forces of social opposition, socialists, democrats, labour organisations and the Kurdish people stand shoulder to shoulder to halt this counter-revolutionary process imposed on Turkey by the US and the collaborationist regime; a process that will wrest the country’s destiny from the hands of the imperialists and the palace and place it in the hands of the people’s will.

True peace, democracy and freedoms can only be won through the struggle waged with this sense of responsibility. ∗∗∗ The AKP and MHP are attempting to use America’s new policy direction as an opportunity to sustain a regime that has lost its domestic social support. Through this means, they seek to fragment and divide the opposition; in the resulting climate, they aim to complete the counter-revolutionary process by, if possible, paving the way for Erdoğan to become president for life.

For opposition movements, the central focus of the struggle ahead must be a political strategy centred on preventing the imposition of such a counter-revolution. This has now become the fundamental issue for the entire country. This struggle cannot be viewed merely as the removal of a particular party or individual from the regime, to be replaced by another party or individual.

Moreover, from America’s perspective, Erdoğan can only remain a viable option so long as he is able to carry out this transformation. Otherwise, as the post-Erdoğan debates also show, the real issue for America is the completion of this transformation in Turkey in line with its own order in the Middle East. Under these conditions, it is clear that even if there were merely a change of regime in the country, this alone would not be sufficient to lead the country out of this dark tunnel.

Indeed, it is abundantly clear that the regime is attempting to implement a plan which can be summarised as relying on American imperialism to divide and fragment the opposition, co-opt the Kurdish movement, and thereby construct a reactionary regime. However, it is impossible to accept from the outset that this plan will achieve absolute success. From time to time, arguments are put forward suggesting that it is impossible to oppose this reactionary path imposed by the regime, and that to do so amounts to opposing ‘peace’.

For example, views are expressed—such as those of Öcalan—that those who oppose this process will be crushed and wiped out, or, as Cemil Bayık has stated, that they will simply vanish. People such as Cengiz Çandar also emphasise that there is no other option, using extreme rhetoric to suggest that those who oppose it should take up arms and retreat to the mountains. Is there really no other option but to submit to the regime imposed upon us by a reactionary regime and imperialism?

Yet, there is much that can be done by uniting the Kurdish people’s demands for equality, freedom and a dignified peace with the struggle to rid ourselves of this regime, which has taken on the role of imperialism’s proxy in the region, and by working together to build a free and democratic country. That is why, in the coming period, in order to fulfil these challenging tasks, we must stand in resolute unity and struggle alongside all the dynamics of social opposition, all workers, pensioners, women, young people, and all opposition political and social organisations to take charge of the country’s destiny. *gelecekyolda.org taken from the website.

Note: This article is translated from the original article titled ABD'nin Ortadoğu planı ve Türkiye'nin geleceği*, published in BirGün newspaper on September 10, 2026.