From Syria to Libya: Erdogan continues to extort Europe with refugee card

Nahla Abdel Moneim

By occupying Libya, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan seeks to establish military bases to protect his ambitions in North Africa, as he dreams of bringing the region back under Ottoman control again by using political Islamist movements owing allegiance to his delusional caliphate, in addition to exploiting the region’s resources and economic wealth.

Refugees for gas

If Erdogan completes the Turkish occupation of Libya, it will be a threat to the security of the Middle East as well as Europe. The Europeans have already experienced Erdogan’s malicious dealings with them during the Syrian crisis, as he extorted and humiliated the European Union with the card of migrants and extremists in exchange for the EU’s to remain silent and not impose sanctions against him while Turkey depleted gas resources in Cyprus and Greece.

About 3.5 million Syrian refugees live within camps dispersed throughout Turkey, and Erdogan has exploited them politically for his own benefit. Recently, it was revealed that the meeting of EU foreign ministers earlier in July was held to discuss imposing sanctions on the Turkish regime in order to deter it from political and economic abuse of EU countries, but it only resulted in condemnations of Turkey’s extortion by means of migrants and extremists.

Although Erdogan signed a refugee care agreement with the EU in exchange for Turkey receiving billions of dollars, he often threatens to open the border if he feels the need to do so politically. In February, the Turkish president released migrants to face their fate at the border with Greece in response to some Turkish soldiers being killed in Syria and in order to obtain a green light or even silence from the international community regarding Ankara’s actions in northern Syria.

This same scenario could play out if Ankara succeeds in occupying the whole of Libya. The burden of the military conflict will open the door for millions attempting to migrate to Europe, and Erdogan will surely use the migrant and extremist card again to negotiate in his favor against the EU. On July 14, Muhajir News warned against human trafficking networks from Tripoli to Rome.

Also at play are Erdogan’s ambitions of controlling Eastern Mediterranean gas. Ankara already controls the route transporting Russian gas through Turkish territory to Europe, and now it aims to occupy another location that gives it control of new energy sources so as to make Europe dependent upon Turkey, as EU countries have been looking for another gas resource to free themselves from Moscow and Ankara.

Sleeping Brotherhood threat

Erdogan’s ambition will not stop if he is able to take control of Libya, but rather he will seek to impose his Ottoman caliphate in other countries such as Tunisia, where the Brotherhood presides over the legislative branch, or Algeria, which is experiencing a new stage in its political life. He will even try to spread his caliphate farther to achieve influence in Europe.

Over the years, the Brotherhood has managed to spread its network throughout European countries by means of its various institutions and organizations, especially those operating under the guise of charitable and humanitarian work, which has created a mass base for the terrorist group, pretending to assist many in Muslim and minority societies to overcome the crises of their alienation.

When looking at the file of relations between Erdogan and minorities in Europe, especially the Kurds or those with Turkish origins, it is found that Turkish intelligence is strongly active and operating against opponents. Austria complained about this when it was confirmed that Ankara was behind the street wars in Vienna between Kurds and Turks at the end of June, while Berlin has also complained of similar activities being carried out in Germany, as Erdogan remains able to orchestrate new battles throughout Europe by means of Brotherhood-affiliated organizations.