Turkey on the Path to Joining BRICS: Will Global Balances Change?

Turkey's participation in the BRICS community, consisting of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, at the summit to be held in Kazan, Russia, in October has been a topic of discussion for about a month. Ankara's membership in such a group, dominated by China and Russia, has the potential to change regional and global balances.

Before the summit, while President Erdoğan was in the USA, the Greek newspaper Katimerini brought up a striking claim. The newspaper asserted that a new proposal had come from the USA for Turkey to be re-included in the F-35 program. Accordingly, it was claimed that the Washington administration stated that Ankara would be included in the F-35 program on the condition that the S-400s purchased from Russia would be kept under US control at Incirlik Air Base.

THE WORLD FOCUSED ON MULTILATERALISM IN FOREIGN POLICY

Even the discussions surrounding the S-400s have not fallen off the agenda for years, and it is clear that Turkey's intention to join BRICS will be talked about more. Moreover, the messages Erdoğan conveyed during his meeting with journalists at the Türkevi in the USA indicate a clear stance in Turkish foreign policy, as well as signaling that the issue will be more contentious. In his speech, Erdoğan stated, "We cannot sever our ties with the Turkish world and the Islamic world just because we are a NATO country. BRICS and ASEAN are structures that hold opportunities for us to particularly enhance our economic collaborations. Being part of these structures does not mean abandoning NATO."

Simultaneously with Erdoğan's statement, the Speaker of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey, Numan Kurtulmuş, met with Russian President Vladimir Putin. He then gave an interview to Russia's official news agency TASS. The center of the interview was Turkey's potential BRICS membership. In response to a question about how Turkey's entry into BRICS would benefit the country, Kurtulmuş said, "Turkey's entry into BRICS will not restrict Turkey; on the contrary, it will increase Turkey's foreign policy options and Turkey's connection with BRICS will contribute significantly to world peace."

WORLD MEDIA DISCUSSES TURKEY-BRICS COOPERATION

Following these official statements, the world media began to discuss the Turkey-BRICS partnership again. The Reuters news agency, which updates its subscribers on developments in this regard, highlighted Erdoğan's messages regarding Turkey being kept waiting for EU membership for years. The French AFP agency also used the headline, "Putin said he expects Erdoğan in Russia for the BRICS summit in October" in its news.

The Israeli newspaper The Jerusalem Post emphasized Erdoğan's statements that Turkey's membership in BRICS and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization is not an alternative to NATO. The newspaper also quoted Erdoğan's words, "When you look at those who say 'do not join BRICS or any other structure,' they are the same people who have kept us waiting at the door of the European Union for years, which we have been trying to be a part of. We cannot determine our future based on them."

IS BRICS AN ALTERNATIVE TO NATO?

In comments from the Ukrainian media, which is at war with Russia, it was emphasized that the main reason for Turkey's membership in BRICS is the years of waiting for EU membership. The Indian press from United News of India, the Bulgarian media from "novinite," and the Portuguese press from "Observador" reported that Turkey does not see BRICS as an alternative to NATO. Armenian media, drawing attention to Turkey's relations with Russia and China, tried to analyze how the future of Ankara-Yerevan relations would be affected by BRICS.

Turkey's membership in this important economic bloc is seen as a step that will increase the country's global economic and political influence. BRICS countries constitute a large part of the world economy, and Turkey's membership could further enhance the power of this bloc.