Opposition party accuses Erdoğan government of partnering with US, Israel

The Workers’ Party of Turkey (TİP) on Wednesday accused the government of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan of serving as a covert ally of Israel and an open partner of the United States, issuing a strongly worded statement in response to the ongoing war between Israel and Iran.

In a message shared on the party’s official X account, TİP accused the government of “paving the way” for what it called a disastrous and destabilizing conflict that now threatens the region’s future, including Turkey’s own security.

“The Palace regime led by the AKP [Erdoğan’s ruling Justice and Development Party] and MHP [AKP’s far-right ally the Nationalist Movement Party] is an open ally of the US and a covert ally of Israel,” the party said, using the term “Palace regime” as a reference to Erdoğan’s executive presidency, which has enjoyed centralized power since a 2017 constitutional referendum.

The statement was issued five days after Israel’s military assault on Iranian nuclear and military sites, which triggered a direct Iranian response involving drones, ballistic missiles and hypersonic weapons. The confrontation has left hundreds dead and sparked global alarm over a wider regional war. Erdoğan has condemned Israel’s actions and supported Iran’s right to self-defense while also preparing Turkey’s military and diplomatic institutions for potential spillover effects.

TİP, a self-described socialist party with representation in Turkey’s parliament, sharply criticized the Erdoğan government’s long-standing relationships with the United States and Gulf powers and accused it of enabling Israeli security infrastructure in the region.

“The AKP, which has remained in power through unconstitutional practices in our country, is one of the actors that paved the way for this bloody process in our region,” the statement said.

The party reminded that Erdoğan’s family is partnered with security companies linked to Israel and that Turkish companies continue to conduct commercial trade with Israel despite public statements condemning the war. It further claimed that Turkish ports are being used to facilitate the transfer of oil and military goods to Israel.

TİP also pointed to military installations under US control in Turkey, including Incirlik Airbase in Adana and the Kürecik radar station in Malatya, both of which have long attracted criticism from Turkey’s left. The radar station, opened during AKP rule in 2012, is part of NATO’s missile defense network and a source of controversy in Turkey over whether the US shares its data with Israel, given that it detects threats from Iran.

TİP argued that these facilities could become targets in a regional escalation and demanded their immediate closure.

“The [military installations in] İncirlik and Kürecik, which could become targets in a regional conflict, must be closed immediately,” the statement said. “All commercial and military relations that keep Israel alive must be terminated.”

The party also criticized what it called Turkey’s “dishonorable” silence and accused Erdoğan of collaborating with imperialist forces to reshape the Middle East. It pointed to Ankara’s previous support for forces that toppled Bashar al-Assad in Syria and its more recent cooperation with Damascus as evidence of policies that ultimately align with Israel and US objectives in the region.

TİP argued that Turkey should mobilize all of its “military, commercial, political and diplomatic means” to push for an end to hostilities and force regional and global actors to act on what it called “imperialist-Zionist aggression.”

The statement concluded with a call for popular resistance in Turkey and across the region, emphasizing solidarity with Palestinians and revolutionary movements.

“The peoples of the region must and will take their destiny into their own hands,” it said. “The path to peace in our region lies in the defeat of imperialism, the elimination of nuclear weapons as an option for all countries without exception and the liberation of Palestine.”