Erdogan's Risky Game

Turkish president Erdoğan wants to show the Islamic World that he is the center of international attention. In this way, he wants to show Muslims that he can deal with multiple crises, despite them being artificially manufactured by him. However, the fact that he calls for a boycott of French products shows that he is playing a risky game in his attempt to disorientate the domestic public from the very big and real economic problem he has created.

In its own struggle against the Muslim Brotherhood, Saudi Arabia has spearheaded an Arab coalition against Turkey and Qatar. For the better part of this month, Saudi Arabia  has conducted a successful unofficial boycott of Turkish products. 

Earlier this month, eight major Turkish business groups urged the Saudi government to intervene and resolve trade problems and warned from what they called “negative repercussions on trade relations.” 

Mango, a major Spanish fashion retailer with 55 stores in Saudi Arabia and manufacturing facilities in Turkey, decided to look for alternative manufacturers to keep its business operations in Saudi Arabia. 

The unofficial boycott of Turkey has reached such an unprecedented level in the Arab Kingdom that even local fast-food chain Herfy’s renamed one of its products from the “Turkish burger” to the “Greek burger,” while supermarkets are removing Turkish goods from their shelves.

The Turkish President may already know that a boycott of French products will not be anywhere near as effective as the Saudi one against Turkey. Rather, it should be seen as a rallying cry for extremist Muslims, particularly those in Europe, to start becoming a security threat across the continent. 

This has received widespread condemnation across Europe, including from Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas, Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte and Greek President Katerina Sakellaropoulou. 

It is likely that Erdoğan’s constant provocations against Europe will result in limited sanctions and embargoes in December that will only result in a further decline in the Turkish economy.  However, the Turkish president has effectively made a battle call against Europe which could see an increase in terrorist attacks and other related security risks.