"Türkiye-Latin America Relations and the Cyprus Issue" Discussed at the Diplomat School

Distinguished speakers once again took part in the 5th week of the Diplomat School. Participants in the program, Bahçeşehir University Head of the Department of Political Science and International Relations Prof. Dr. Mert Bilgin, Retired Ambassador Uluç Özülker, Retired Ambassador Alev Kılıçand Member of the 5th European Parliament Ozan Ceyhun shared their comments and views. The program addressed the topics "Energy Security and Turkish Foreign Policy", "The Arab Spring and the Middle East Problem", "Türkiye-Latin America Relations and the Mexican Perspective" and "Solving the Cyprus Problem under Current Conditions".

Highlights from the speakers are as follows:

Prof.  Dr.  Mert BİLGİN

"Energy security is obtaining the right amount of energy resources in the right place. Managing this is becoming more difficult, and parameters come into play. Türkiye's energy consumption is increasing every day, and the cost of resource consumption is tripling every year; due to population growth, urbanization and changes in our consumption habits, in the normal scenario our current electricity consumption will double between 2023 and 2030, and we will have to implement energy investments of 5 billion dollars every year. With the privatization of production facilities, the share of the private sector in energy will rise to 75%. Diversity of resources and suppliers is important for Türkiye; in 2023, exports of the mining sector will rise to 20 billion dollars. We have become overly dependent on natural gas, and we need to reduce this share to around 30%. We need to make more use of coal. There is a target of 4 nuclear power plants, which our domestic consumption requires. Nuclear energy also plays an important role in foreign policy. The agreement with Russia on the construction and operation of the Mersin Akkuyu nuclear power plant is also important. We serve as a Natural Transit Route, a bridge between countries, and in this sense we are trying to achieve diplomatic gains. In terms of oil, the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline is very important for cooperation between Türkiye, Azerbaijan and Georgia, and Armenia's inclusion in this cooperation in the future is also possible. In addition, the Iraq-Türkiye oil pipeline and the Samsun-Ceyhan pipeline are of great importance. Türkiye is not alone when it joins these agreements; all countries have their views and interests in this regard. The Arab Gas program was disrupted due to problems between Egypt and Israel. Türkiye's idea was for oil to reach Syria via Lebanon and from there Türkiye through a multi-stakeholder project, and it acted wisely by scaling down these projects, creating short lines by building bridges between main lines; this targets small markets, but our country achieves great gains with these steps, and this is a success. Personally, my wish is to benefit from solar energy, create organic gardens and build wind farms. However, under current conditions, nuclear power plants are needed for economic growth. Shale gas has been very much on the agenda in recent years in the USA, China, Poland, Türkiye and Germany; it will bring very large returns, but the environmental issue may come up. The flow of gas from Russia to Türkiye has never been cut off, because the EU countries and Türkiye are the most important markets for Russia; they have not politicized it."

Uluç Özülker

"What is the Middle East? The USA defined as the Middle East the Muslim geography located in a belt starting from Morocco. America modified this definition in line with its interests. For example, Syria and Iran were not included in this policy. It did not see Syria as a friend. It was Shah Abbas, a Turkmen, who made Iran truly Shiite. It was not called Iran in past centuries; the name Iran was given in 1935 by Shah Reza Pahlavi. America's intentions in its Middle East project have been divided into 2 groups: those behind the scenes and those on the surface. Its apparent intention is to bring democracy to these countries. Women's rights in particular were brought to the fore in this regard. The hidden reason is its effort to develop economic relations. America first tried to implement this project in Algeria. After the September 11 attacks, Islamic terrorism was increasingly created. As a first implementation, "moderate Islam" was tried in Algeria. But this resulted in civil war in Algeria. At no time in history has an Arab Union been formed or have Arabs been able to think on the same front. The Arab Spring is not a uniform event either and differs according to the internal structures of the countries. Tunisia is the most democratic and most liberal of these countries. Because the basic element of this movement is 'freedom'. If people are not free, such explosions can occur. The self-immolation of a young Tunisian, a student who was also a street vendor, won the reaction and support of the people. Has Tunisia succeeded? This country has nothing to do with the Muslim Brotherhood. In Tunisia, new leaders came to power after the elections. This leader was referred to as a representative of moderate Islam and was seen as equivalent to the AK Party government. But the constitution that was written shows that it is an Islamic State. There are two aspects to the Arab Spring. First, if the people have risen up, there is nothing that can stop them. Second, with growing awareness, the people have called the past to account. In Egypt, the situation has a different dimension. Tahrir Square has become a symbol. Egypt is a country at odds with its past and has not been able to get along with the West. It adopted different policy approaches in different periods. In Egypt, the army is in a different position; it is not a people's army. It is a separate, wealthy apparatus within the state. The army's role as an investor in the economy stands out. Because the people were poor, they united against Hosni Mubarak. Later, the army merged with the people. Although Tunisia took democratic steps, this did not happen in Egypt. The army favored situations that would consolidate its own position. Elections were held out of necessity, and two important powers emerged: the Muslim Brotherhood and the Salafists. Although the Muslim Brotherhood (Ikhwan al-Muslimin) first emerged elsewhere, it moved to Cairo due to civil wars. The Muslim Brotherhood is expansionist, not militant. The Salafists, on the other hand, originate from Pakistan. Morsi initially created a moderate image, but later this was not the case. In the decree he issued recently, he practically declared himself a dictator. Egypt, which had brought secularism to the fore, put the phrase "it is an Islamic state" into the draft constitution. Libya has a tribal order. The balance of power between tribes has come to the fore. Gaddafi was a dictator. While Gaddafi spent oil revenues on the people, he added the rest to his own wealth. Here, the explosion turned into civil war, and there was a split between the Eastern and Western tribes. As a result of the elections, seats were allocated to tribes and parties. In the end, it ended in a terribly bloody way. The Arab Spring has had different reflections in different countries. In Saudi Arabia, openings were made to satisfy the tribes. In Yemen, the head of state was sent away with his life spared. Democracy in the real sense has not been achieved. In Lebanon, looking at the past, although there were Christians, a Sunni state was created by France. Lebanon has not been able to get its share of the Arab Spring today."

Alev Kılıç

"What we call Latin America covers an area of 21 million square kilometers. This is 15% of the world. Its population is 580 million. What we call Latin America was unknown until the 15th century. Mexico was discovered in 1492. In the early 1500s, Spanish and Portuguese ships were going back and forth. A population of nearly 5 million had lived there isolated from all other currents of the region. Humanity there lived without communication; for a while about 3 million lived intertwined in Mexico, and development stopped at some point. Before Spain arrived, the native people fought each other for entertainment. In the 1500s, Cortés landed in Mexico from Spain with his soldiers. They saw a group of naked people before them and called them savages. For a while, the Spanish wondered whether the people in Mexico could be human. The people of Mexico, Central and Latin America did not know the horse; they only knew the crocodile, puma and snake. Since there were no pack animals, they could not use the wheel. There were no metals such as iron and copper, but gold and silver were worked. Tools such as arrows and knives were made of stone. Spain came for their gold with cannons and rifles. When the native people saw the Spanish on horses, they said they were gods, and with the thought that one cannot fight gods, they were taken by the Spanish without a single loss. In 1521, even the largest city in Mexico was taken without a fight. According to historians, Mexican cities were more beautiful than Venice. Running water passed through every house. From the 1500s onward, the basic measure of wealth was accumulated gold and silver. The aim of the Mexican expedition was also to find gold and silver there. Mexico has an incredible silver reserve. After the first 20 years, Spain became rich in silver and the value of the Ottoman treasury fell. There was strong and unaccounted money in Europe. With this abundance of money, the economic, political and governmental performance of France and Spain was a factor in the Ottoman period of stagnation and decline. The Pope was the sole selector, the one who decided who would share the New World. He divided those lands between the Spanish and Portuguese. He made a division by meridian. A new Spain was established there, and no work belonging to the Maya and Aztecs was left. Everyone who was not Christian was either killed or burned. In 1535, an Aztec saw an image on a mountain and said he had seen the Virgin Mary. The Vatican approved this, and she was accepted as the Virgin Mary of Mexico. Every year on 12 December, people go to the mountain to commemorate Mary. For them, this is like a pilgrimage. Mexico remained under Spanish rule until the 1820s. Two main languages are used in Latin America: Spanish and Portuguese. A little Dutch, French and English are also spoken. Almost the entire population is Catholic. During the French Revolution, Napoleon's campaign won against the Spanish. He also took Spain's colonies. In the 1820s, independence movements began throughout Latin America. They were started by priests and Spanish aristocrats, saying they wanted an independent state. Mexico gained its independence in 1821. After that, land reform took place with uprisings in the South and North. The rules set at that time are still in force. Today, Latin America consists of 46 units; about 35 are independent, and some are autonomous or semi-autonomous. Since 1820, the spirit of Latin America has been kept alive and a union has been formed. America and Canada are also part of these. South and Latin America are united among themselves but keep America and Canada separate. The reason for this is not clear."

Ozan Ceyhun

“"As a former Member of the European Parliament living in three countries, I was very happy to discuss the Cyprus issues with you. Because there are not many valid discussions on this subject. I have shared a lot with Turkish people who migrated from Northern Cyprus, and it is not difficult to talk about these; what is difficult is changing Türkiye's Cyprus policy. Rather than superficial debates and debates about Denktaş, Cyprus is an island that concerns us very closely and can come onto the agenda at any moment. For you young people, as future officials who will represent Türkiye abroad, conducting the Cyprus debates in a multidimensional way will greatly help your development and progress. I am someone who has served as rapporteur on "Home Affairs and Justice", worked as a diplomat in Germany, was first a Turkish and then a German citizen, and managed the Democratic Party's election campaigns in Germany, and I am no stranger to Turkish domestic politics or the Cyprus problem. The Republic of Cyprus is always described from 1960 onward. People of the Orthodox faith are regarded as bigoted. In the Greek Cypriot side, there is a church that is even more reactionary, religion-centered and bigoted than in Greece. The people of the island (Greek Cypriots) are also very much under the influence of the church. From 1970 onward, Turkish Cypriots were able to live in their homeland for the first time with confidence in their safety. In 1974, Türkiye intervened in the coup carried out by a fascist Greek Cypriot under the influence of a fascist German colonel, and it was a very appropriate intervention. Two different operations took place, and today's borders of Cyprus were determined. Until the 2002 Annan Plan, the image of Turkish Cypriots was very bad as a result of Greek Cypriot provocations and campaigns. The fact that the Greek Cypriots and Greeks did not consult the European Union when making their moves contributed to improving the image of Turkish Cypriots and to a more moderate approach toward them. Even in their most bigoted Muslim form, Turks are more civilized than the most developed form of the Orthodox. De facto, there is a Turkish Cypriot state, and this has now become something to be discussed within the EU framework. As a result of the economic crisis in Greece and Cyprus, Greece is trying to keep the Greek Cypriot side afloat with loans obtained from Russia. Because it acts without asking the EU, without negotiating and without cooperating with the EU in the fields of economy and energy, the demagoguery of innocent Greek Cypriots in places without Turks is no longer much cared about in the international arena. If there is to be a solution in Cyprus, it must go through two states. World public opinion is also tired of this problem. The Turkish side must exist on these lands on its own feet, in a "Taiwan-like" manner, without the aid it receives from Türkiye. If they prove that, since 1974, the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot sides have lived relatively more peacefully with good neighborly relations, we will have come closer to the EU goal. In the old EU negotiations, Turkish diplomats would start from Manzikert, explain at length and never get to the agenda and new issues. Now it is necessary to act more pragmatically and develop the entire Cyprus policy accordingly."