On December 10, 2020, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan went to Baku, Azerbaijan, to preside over a military parade organized to celebrate Azerbaijan's victory over Armenia in Nagorno-Karabakh.[1] Addressing the Victory Parade, Erdoğan recited a poem, which Iran regarded as support for the secession of Azerbaijani ethnic parts of Iran.[2] "They separated the Aras River and filled it with rocks and rods. I will not be separated from you. They have separated us forcibly," the poem reads.[3]
A day after Erdoğan delivered his speech in Baku, on December 11, 2020, Yeni Şafak editor-in-chief İbrahim Karagül published an article, titled "Army Of Heavens, Of Islam... The Return Of The Turks. Turkey Represents A 'Call' For All Oppressed Nations, Regions," stressing Turkey's role as the leader of the Muslim world, and as the leader of all the oppressed against the oppressor, i.e., the West.
Talking about Erdoğan's message in Baku, Karagül said: "The message given yesterday in Baku is not limited to Karabakh. It is not addressed to Armenia alone. That message is for those who have not been able to overcome their habit of managing relations with Turkey through tutelage, for all countries that have been making one plan after another in efforts to share the Muslim region among themselves, and for the whole world. This message being given from the Caucasus, a look at the world through the Caucasus, is much beyond the victory won in a 44-day [Azerbaijan-Armenia] war. That message is given not for these 44 days but for the whole 21st century. From now on, the same message will be given in other places, in other corners of the region as well, because Turkey is back."
(Source: Tccb.gov.tr)
Following is Yeni Şafak's translation of Karagül's article:[4]
"Turkey Is The Only Country In The World Resisting And Fighting On Behalf Of The World's Muslims"
"Turkey is the only country in the world resisting and fighting on behalf of the world's Muslims, on behalf of the Turkic world, on behalf of Africa, on behalf of those living in the 'Middle East,' on behalf of the 'Muslim Middle Zone,' which is the earth's main axis spanning the Atlantic and Pacific coasts.
"Turkey is the only country to resist Western colonialism, which has been ongoing for centuries, which has afflicted every nation, drowning them in pain and suffering, trampling over their honor and identity. It is the only country to take confidence and ride to all climates roamed by this savageness.
"Turkey laid all its claims and calculations for the 21st century on the table with a foolproof plan for all preparations with respect to the great march by maintaining this upright stance not with heroism but with an intellectual leap, and patience, and wisdom.
"Turkey a 'call' to all nations, all countries.
"Turkey is a call, a message to all nations, to all countries that have been oppressed, disregarded, wanted to be excluded from the history scene, that have been victims, doomed to poverty, held under tutelage, exploited, whose resources were looted, and that were prevented from recovering.
"Turks, who took to the stage when the Abbasids were collapsing, when the Caliphate was collapsing, when the Islamic community was falling apart. They helped the Islamic community recover for centuries, keeping it in solidarity, side-by-side; they changed history and built the region, and have taken to the stage again in the 21st century.
"As the region is being divided into parts, countries are being enslaved, the Islamic nation's honor and values are being trampled, the same power, the same initiative, the same confrontation, the same solidarity, the same political language, the same spirit has returned."
"The Message Given In Baku Is Not Limited To Karabakh"
"Everywhere Turkey reaches out helping hand, it achieves victory. This is Turkey's revolution!
"Everywhere Turkey reaches out its helping hand achieves victory. Whichever country or power it supports recovers. Whomever it cooperates with in solidarity rises. This is novel. This is the greatest transformation of the 21st-century world. This is Turkey's revolution!
"The age of incursions, which started with the Ottoman Empire's regression, and slowed down with the Republic's founding, has now been stopped completely. Today, the U.S., European Union countries, and Europe's colonialist capitals all have to accept this reality.
"Who was the message in Baku addressed to?
"The message given yesterday in Baku is not limited to Karabakh. It is not addressed to Armenia alone. That message is for those who have not been able to overcome their habit of managing relations with Turkey through tutelage, for all countries that have been making one plan after another in efforts to share the Muslim region among themselves, and for the whole world.
"This message being given from the Caucasus, a look at the world through the Caucasus, is much beyond the victory won in a 44-day war. That message is given not for these 44 days but for the whole 21st century. From now on, the same message will be given in other places, in other corners of the region as well, because Turkey is back.
"Army of heavens... The return of the Turks.
"An army held under pressure to keep Turkey under control taking action for Turkey and the region cannot be tolerated, and this is felt throughout the world. This is the sole reason underlying the wave of attacks coming from Europe, the 'stop Turkey' calls coming from the U.S. This is the reason behind the outside and inside attacks targeting our country.
"This is because today, that army is the army of the heavens, which is running to the aid of all the oppressed. Turkey is opening the doors of both the Islamic world and the Turkic world with this army that is back in its basin.
"It is implementing a great plan, knot by knot, step by step, from North Africa to the depths of Africa, from the Caucasus and Central Asia to South and Southeast Asia, all the way to every corner of the Islamic mainland called the Middle East.
"This plan is activating the homeland of humanity, the central region, leading the development of a new joint power in an age the world has been divided as the East and the West."
"Azerbaijan Stood Out Not As A Turkic State In The South Caucasus But As A Geopolitical Power"
"High time to say something beyond 'One nation, two states.'
"It is high time to say something beyond, 'One nation, two states,' in reference to Azerbaijan. The picture in Baku has surged beyond the limits of two countries. A spectacular power has been built at the East gate. Azerbaijan stood out not as a Turkic state in the South Caucasus but as a geopolitical power. Turkey's global struggle and Azerbaijan's presence simply corresponded.
"President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said, 'The epics will continue.' From now onward, alliances are going to roam from one region to another. Victories are going to follow one after the other, with their influence felt in every corner of the region. This is because the Age of Victories has started.
"Not with heroism but with intellect, wisdom.
"We believe!
"We believe this. We believe in it with our mind, our heart, our history awareness, our political gene, and our common identity from the Atlantic to the Pacific. We believe not with heroism but with intellect and wisdom, because we know this requires awareness and strength. We are well aware that the victory in Karabakh is not the result of military technology alone but the result of a mental transformation.
"These are exactly the steps Turkey is taking. Intelligent, well-calculated steps, which were planned upon centuries-old identity and regional geopolitics. Therefore, Turkey will continue to surprise. EU leaders gathered today with 'sanctions on Turkey' on their agenda. They are not going to be able to achieve anything. But they will be surprised the most.
"Those pouring heart, soul will win.
"The day Operation Euphrates Shield was launched, I had said, 'This is just the beginning.' Now, I am saying, 'Just wait, there is more to come.' We are still in the beginning stages. We have not gained speed yet. We are not arrogant. We are the leaders of a rising period, who have poured their heart and soul into it."
[1] Tccb.gov.tr/en/news/542/123140/-as-long-as-turkey-and-azerbaijan-join-forces-they-will-continue-to-overcome-obstacles-and-achieve-many-more-victories-, December 10, 2020.
[2] Hurriyetdailynews.com/turkey-iran-calm-down-tension-regarding-poem-160798, December 13, 2020.
[3] Tehrantimes.com/news/455619/Zarif-responds-to-Erdogan-s-wrong-poem-on-Iranian-Azerbaijan, December 11, 2020.
[4] Yenisafak.com, December 11, 2020.
