ANKARA - Stating that the attitude of Moscow is just like the attitude of Ankara, Foreign Policy Expert Cengiz Aktar said: "In order for the peace to be establised, Ukraine needs to defend itself like Rojava."

 

Russia's military action against Ukraine continues on its 7th day. While the USA and EU countries continue to impose sanctions on Russia, Turkey has not taken a clear stance. There are some talks on starting the negotiation process between Ukraine and Russia, but it is not yet clear whether a result will come out of the negotiation. Foreign Policy Expert and Athens University Lecturer Cengiz Aktar evaluated the latest developments and how to build a peace process.

 

Emphasizing that this is the most serious war threat since the Second World War, Aktar said: "Nothing happened during the cold war since 1945 to this day. The cold war ended without even firing a gun. How will this situation proceed now? Pandora's box have opened and there is a dictator in Moscow. No one around him can say, 'Let's not do this.'

 

'HIS ATTITUDE IS JUST LIKE TURKEY'S'

 

Stating that the attitude of Russia is just like the attitude of Turkey, Aktar said: "Putin is marching to his own beat. This is not an operation limited with Donetsk and Luhansk as they said in the beginning. Like this is not enough, Putin is taunting everyone else. He recently hit at UN member Finland and Sweden which had not been in any conflict since the beginning of 1800's. He threatened them that there would be consequences of them joining the NATO. He is threatening anyone who would intervene with his operation against Ukraine. How will he do that? With an atomic bomb! In other words, there is an aggression that goes beyond what the British and American intelligence say."

 

'A NEW CENTURY BEGINS'

 

Regarding the evaluations of the Third World War, Aktar said that there will be before and after 2022 in the world. Aktar said, “At least this will be the case in Europe. The First World War started in 1914. Experts of International Relations say that it was the end of the 19th century. 21st century probably ended in 2022. I don't know if this is the Third World War, but a new century had begun. The problems won't come to an end as long as Putin is there in Moscow and the giant country called Russia is run by one-man. Unless we get rid of these dictators, there will be no peace. Therefore, what happened will be reflected in security, economic and European integration policies, especially in Europe, and to NATO. If there is no radical change in Moscow, there will be numerous consequences in the upcoming years."

 

'RUSSIA TAKES ON THE WHOLE WORLD'

 

Regarding the sanction imposed on Russia, Aktar stated that it is a matter of debate whether the sanctions will work or not, but Russia has taken the whole world on. Aktar said, “War is a very costly thing. The numbers started to come out. It is costing Russia 2 billion dollars a day. There is also a cost for Ukraine. On the other hand, mostly western countries took very serious economic sanctions decisions. More importantly, 28 countries led by the UK decided to provide military and humanitarian aid to Ukraine. This changes things very quickly. There will be a lot of weapons, Ukraine has borders with four EU member states; Poland, Slovakia, Romania and Hungary. In any case, the Russian army failed to overthrow Ukraine's defenses in the first 24 or 48 hours as they had hoped. It is deploying troops to the border.  So it looks like it's stuck, at least for now. This is not just the west's 'empty words' as Tayyip Erdoğan said. Very concrete decisions are being taken."

 

'THINGS MIGHT CHANGE IF THIS WAR CONTINUES' 

 

Stating that what is happening in Ukraine will swallow Russia, Aktar told that it will have consequences for Syria and Libya. Aktar said: "Russia will not give up on the naval base and air base in Syria. It is there to stay. Turkey's unclear stance both siding with NATO and Russia might also have consequences. Ankara took a stand against Russia within NATO and then it abstained in the vote to suspend Russia's representation rights in the European Council and turned against the west. This is not sustainable. Russia may hold Turkey to account on that one day. Ankara and Moscow are in a very layered relationship If things change in Syria and Russia decides to withdraw from Idlib, Turkey might have to bear the brunt of it. It might even drive Turkey out of the occupied zones in Rojava. In this sense, things might change if the war continues any longer."

 

'THE WAY TO PEACE MUST BE PAVED'

 

Stressing that the first principle should be peace, Aktar said that there are things to be done in order to achieve peace. Aktar said, “Unfortunately, one of them is the state of being able to protect oneself in the world we live in. Everyone is yelling at NATO. USA and UK are not as pure as the driven snow. 20 years ago, the USA stirred up the hornet's nest in the Middle East and destroyed it. The emergence of ISIS, Syria… All this is related to the American intervention. And England. So these are not things to be commended. The West has always been involved in Syria, now it's up to the defense forces in Rojava and especially the Kurds. They have been doing their best for years. But in order to establish peace, you must first be able to defend yourself, as we saw in Rojava. Weapons are needed, unfortunately we live in such a world. Of course, we say no to war, but it is necessary to pave the way for peace.”

 

'IT ALL CAME CRUSHING DOWN'

 

Stating that it is not possible for Ukranians to take a banner in their hand, stand against the Russian soldiers and say that they don't want to fight, Aktar said: "Unfortunately, this is not the world we are living in. It is a nightmare. It works for the countries that sells arms to countries struggling with conflicts. For example, Germany has been selling arms to Russia for years but it says it can sell arms to Ukraine because it is a conflict zone. Is there no conflict in Rojava? How come are you selling arms to Turkey for years? Yes we need peace but we need to pave the way for peace. It is not 1945. They said the war was over and established the United Nations. But here we are. As a result of Putin's Russia's actions, it all came crushing down."

 

Stating that the comments that suggests there would be no war if Ukraine was a NATO country is accurate, Aktar said: "There were other ways. Ukraine being an EU country would also prevent the war. And it is not impossible today. We don't know how Russia will proceed. Even the pro-Russians in Ukraine is condemning Putin and Moscow regime."

 

EXAMPLE OF ROJAVA

 

Reminding the attitude of AKP Chair and President Tayyip Erdoğan when he said Kobané was about to fall, Aktar told that the attitude of Russia is just like the attitude of Turkey. Aktar said: "In situations like these, the struggle of the peoples is a game changer and this is what's happening in Ukraine right now. People are taking up arms and flocking to the fight, protecting their cities. Just like the people had done in Rojava. But guessing the outcome would be very speculative. We don't know it the same thing can happen. Russian army is not a joke. It has its weaknesses but it is a huge army. Very difficult days await Ukraine, Europe and the world."

 

 

MA / Zemo Ağgöz