Turkey opposition worries that Europe is sacrificing democracy for security

Turkey's main opposition says its Western allies are failing to respond as a widening crackdown by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's government targets its leaders and elected mayors.

The latest arrests this week followed a court decision to remove Republican People's Party (CHP) leader Ozgur Ozel and reinstate former leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu in an unprecedented move that was widely condemned by Turkish and international human rights groups.

The European Union's response has been far more restrained.

"There are some visits, there are some letters sent to us," said Ilhan Uzgel, the CHP's former deputy chair. "There are some public statements regarding the situation in Turkey, but the wording and language used is quite mild. [There's] no action."

The CHP has faced more than a year of arrests targeting its mayors on corruption charges. This week, two more were detained, adding to a list that already includes jailed Istanbul mayor and presidential candidate Ekrem Imamoglu.

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Strategic partner

Uzgel said the European Union can no longer stand by and should take a firmer stance.

"Mr Erdogan has to be told, 'you're destroying democracy and what you're doing is against the rule of law,'" said Uzgel.

"There could be some kind of a diplomatic isolation," he added. "So whenever Mr Erdogan meets a foreign leader, he's selling it to his own audience, the Turkish public, that he's a world leader. At least this opportunity could be taken from his hand."

Yet Erdogan is expected to reinforce his international standing at next month's Nato summit in Ankara.

"The two big allies of Turkey have decided not to make human rights an issue in the bilateral relationship," said Asli Aydintasbas, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution in Washington. She notes that the EU and Washington have found rare common ground over Turkey.

"For President Trump, this comes naturally; he doesn't care about human rights advancement globally," she said. "But now Europeans are also looking for some type of functional relationship with Turkey and wanting to disregard human rights as an impediment to bilateral relations."

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Federico Donelli, an international relations expert at the University of Trieste, said the European Union's restrained response reflected Turkey's growing strategic importance.

"The restraint of EU reaction is closely linked to an increase in recognition of Turkey's structural importance for European security."

With Nato's second-largest army and a rapidly expanding defence industry, Turkey is increasingly seen as an important security partner as Europe faces the threat from Russia and uncertainty over the United States' long-term commitment.

"The US is definitely less stable than in the past, so in this context Turkey is increasingly seen less as a [EU] candidate country and more as a strategic partner," said Donelli.

Pressure on Greece and Cyprus

Donelli said this shift could increase pressure on Greece and Cyprus, which have long used their vetoes to slow closer EU defence ties with Turkey because of disputes in the Aegean and eastern Mediterranean.

"We know how much the two countries have conditioned EU-Turkey relations for many years," said Donelli.

"These two countries cannot constrain broader EU strategic choices in the next few years, in the next decade."

Amid the Russian threat and uncertainty over America's resolve, Turkey's opposition worries it is being sacrificed in the name of Europe's security.

"Historically, Turkish EU relations were working for the democratisation of Turkey, but the equation has been reversed. The EU-Turkey ties have been working against Turkey's democratisation," said Uzgel. "The closer Mr Erdogan gets to the EU, [the more] we are losing democracy in Turkey."

He nonetheless warned that Europe's approach is short-sighted and could have wider consequences.

"Turkey is a country of 86 million, so if democracy fails here, it has to have some implications for other countries as well."