British newspapers continued to pay attention to the devastating earthquake that struck Turkey and Syria, leaving thousands dead.
And we start from The Independent newspaper and an article by Borzo Dargahi entitled “‘Where is the state?’… Erdogan faces the anger of his people after the earthquake in Turkey.”
The writer says that anger is growing throughout Turkey as a result of the way President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s government dealt with the devastating earthquake and aftershocks that left thousands dead.
The writer adds that rescue workers and citizens in Turkey and Syria are still searching for survivors who may be stuck under the rubble.
But the political exchange of accusations has already begun, with the presidential and parliamentary elections scheduled in Turkey on May 14.
The writer says that more than 13 million, or 15 percent of Turkey’s population of 85 million in 10 states, have been affected by the disaster, as Erdogan and his Justice and Development Party face accusations from earthquake survivors that official procedures were slow and unevenly distributed, especially in the regions. Politically loyal to the opposition parties.
The writer says that Erdogan was accused of informing municipal officials of the Justice and Development Party, but he avoided representatives of the Kurdish parties and the center-left opposition parties that control many local administrations in the affected areas.
The president also took to the airwaves to complain about politically motivated “fake news” related to the earthquake, the writer says.
He adds that Erdogan said earlier this week: “We are keeping a close eye on those who intend to pit our people against each other with fake news and distortions.”
The writer says that Erdogan’s government ordered telecom service providers to block access to Twitter for fear it could be used to spread unspecified “misinformation” — before consulting with company executives and restoring access to Twitter on Thursday.
He added that the disruption of a platform used to deliver distress calls and offers of assistance had angered many, including political opponents.
The writer believes that Erdogan may have justification and a good reason for concern, as the then-Turkish government’s “failed” response to the 1999 earthquake in the northwest of the country, which killed more than 17,000 people, helped propel him and the Justice and Development Party to power.
Erdogan’s leadership test
We turn to the Financial Times and a report by Adam Samson and Ayla Jean Yakli from the Turkish capital, Ankara, also discussing Erdogan’s handling of the earthquake disaster, under the title: “The earthquake is a test for Erdogan’s leadership as the Turkish elections approach.”
And the newspaper confirmed that his response to the devastating earthquakes this week will dominate the final months of a heated election campaign.
The authors say that Erdogan took advantage of Wednesday’s visit to the destroyed city of Kahramanmaraş, near the epicenter of the earthquake, to direct criticism against those whom he accused of taking advantage of the disaster to advance their own agenda.
The authors believe that Erdogan’s speech reveals the challenge facing the Turkish president of maintaining popular support in the wake of one of the worst natural disasters the country has witnessed in decades, just three months before the presidential and parliamentary elections, which are the most difficult elections he has faced in two decades in power.
The report says Erdogan oversaw an economic boom in the early part of his presidency, but has moved towards a more authoritarian stance since mass protests in 2013 and an attempted coup three years later. In recent years, he adds, journalists have been imprisoned and civil liberties curtailed, as the Turkish president has tightened his grip on state institutions.
He adds that Erdogan’s popularity was declining before the disaster, as the country faced an acute cost of living crisis.
The authors believe that what happens next depends on how the 68-year-old president envisions the response to the worsening crisis.
The report says that Turkish opposition parties have already criticized Erdogan’s management of the earthquake.
He adds that Kemal Kilicdaroglu, head of the Republican People’s Party, the largest opposition party, said, “If someone is mainly responsible for this, it is Erdogan. For 20 years, this government has not prepared the country for an earthquake.”
fighter jets
And we turn to the opinion page in the Guardian newspaper and an article by Simon Jenkins entitled: “The West should think twice before offering fighter jets to Zelensky.”
The writer says that the impassioned speech has its time in every conflict, as the Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelensky, enthusiastically appealed to European countries, saying, “We have freedom, give us wings to protect it.”
The writer says that Zelensky is facing a renewed battle to expel the Russian tanks from his land in the spring, and his cause is just and he faces a strong opponent.
He adds that the war has its own enthusiastic rhythm, which is indifferent to danger and does not exercise caution, and during the past year, Western powers have struggled under the auspices of NATO to contain the battles in Ukraine from escalating to what the theorists of the Cold War feared precisely, which is the destabilization of the balance of power in Europe, which It leads to widespread and catastrophic conflict.
The writer says that at some point in any war, interests diverge. He adds that Russia would like to see Western support for Ukraine as NATO aggression, a view confirmed in part by the West’s global economic sanctions and violent renunciation of all things Russian.
At the same time, he adds, Ukraine has an interest in reciprocating. It demands that Russia be seen as a threat to all of Europe and the world. Encouraged by Western arms, it now wants to drive Russia out of all of Ukraine.
The writer says that talking about peace at this stage of the war receives a familiar and frustrating response, as the settlement is seen as surrender. Both sides feel they can call on more resources, especially Western ones in the case of Kyiv.
The writer believes that the only reasonable way out of this conflict is to reach, sooner or later, some kind of agreement on the basis of the existing balance of power.
He believes that the pursuit of such an agreement is what should dominate the debate over Zelensky’s request for new planes. Military experts say they cannot be used by next spring.
Instead of planes, it would be much better to help Zelensky make progress on the battlefield next spring and use that progress as the basis for a continued effort for peace.