Shanghai Out, NATO In

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan is making sure that we are all sitting on the edges of our seats.
Indeed, he has again managed to make a full U-turn without any qualms or conflict with his inner self whatsoever. Informed analysts knew that the relationship between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Erdoğan was not as good as it used to be, but few were expecting the mutual statements that we have seen in recent days. The Syrian conflict had been effectively compartmentalized by the two sides in a remarkable manner. Although Ankara and Moscow were clearly on opposite sides when it came to Syria, they still managed to continue to work together on energy, bilateral trade and many other regional issues. However, Putin's decision to extend much more visible military support, including supporting regime forces through air operations, has had a debilitating impact on the relationship.
Gone is the Erdoğan who was pleading with Putin to take Turkey into the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO). Gone is the man who was complaining so passionately about the Europeans. We now have an Erdoğan who is talking in Brussels about refugees and even receiving a pat on the back. We now have an Erdoğan reminding Putin that NATO is behind Turkey… No, you have not misread or misunderstood. That is the flavor of the week. Erdoğan has conveniently remembered that Turkey's security is guaranteed by NATO. NATO, the organization which is dominated by the US and Europeans, is that which Erdoğan has loved to detest.
I am sometimes at a loss for words when it comes to explaining Erdoğan's U-turns and this is certainly one that would make it into his top three. As is well known, the Turkish public found out during the Gezi Park protests from Erdoğan himself that a pernicious “interest rate lobby” was behind the protests. We were told that CNN International's broadcasting of Gezi was a deliberate attempt to destabilize Turkey and that Lufthansa was jealous of our new airport. For years we have been hearing -- in no uncertain terms -- that it was the “two-faced West” that could not be trusted and that Turkey's future lied with Russia, China and the Middle East. Putin and Erdoğan were very good buddies, just like Bashar al-Assad and Erdoğan were. But now we are all informed by our president that indeed he was “duped again.” After being duped by the Hizmet movement, the PKK, Assad and perhaps many others, Erdoğan now claims that he was duped by Putin as well. Hmmm… No comment.
To give NATO credit, they jumped on the opportunity. NATO HQ immediately offered strong statements: Enough for Erdoğan's media to parade them as strong expressions of solidarity. Of course, we know that NATO is very well aware of what is going on and has an interest in containing Putin after the events in Ukraine and the Crimea. Nevertheless, we are all watching in awe the 180 degree U-turn of Erdoğan on Putin and NATO.
The only consolation in this farce is that both Erdoğan and Turkey's conservatives have been reminded -- once again -- that Turkey's primary security umbrella is NATO. For decades Turkey has fed an army of 500,000 men and made important sacrifices. Now it is time to benefit from the security that NATO offers to its members. That said, Erdoğan's turnaround on Putin is indeed a historic one. No more Shanghai in the short run. More Brussels and Washington perhaps. We must salute Erdoğan's staggering capability to exercise politics without any principles, any guidelines, any ethics and any consistency and still get away with it.

SUAT KINIKLIOĞLU (Cihan/Today's Zaman)