Erdogan Orders the Arrest of the Mayor of Istanbul! Let's Talk Turkey!

For a few brief shiny moments, it looked as if the President of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, would be the solution for ending the war in Ukraine.

Erdogan offered to provide the setting for negotiating the end of the war.

He also stated that he had the manpower and the war materiel to act as a peacekeeper in Ukraine to act as a guarantor.

In fact, Turkey's military is larger than that of anything the European Union can quickly muster (second only to NATO's dubious forces) and has been manufacturing and exporting weapons in huge quantities for years, some of which he sold to Ukraine.

He has also been actively involved in Syria's civil war, which has provided his military with experience in war settings.

At the same time, Erdogan has maintained relatively civil relations with Putin, refusing to enforce the European Union's sanctions against Russia while purchasing gas and oil from them.

Meanwhile, Erdogan has stated that Ukraine's territorial integrity must be restored to its pre-2014 boundaries, the Ukraine must be free of foreign interference and be allowed to join the European Union and NATO, which Putin doesn't want.

The price for Erdogan's "helpfulness" would be the ultimate admission into the European Union, which the European Union has been putting on the back burner for a long time.

There are several reasons for this.

One is the fact that Turkey is a Muslim state and Erdogan's increasing fundamentalism in that regard worries the liberal and increasingly secular states that comprise the EU.

Yet the possibility of Algeria, another Muslim state, seeking admission was not ruled out by the EU, citing that country's long association with France.

Hmmm...

Another reason for the EU's reticence to admit Turkey is that Turkey would then become the largest country, both in size and population, within that body, giving them undue influence and upsetting both Germany and France's position within the EU.

A third factor is that, despite its huge military and bustling weapons production, Turkey's economy has been in a disastrous state for years, with an inflation rate so high that it frightens the EU to even think about coordinating its economy with Turkey's.

But the overriding factor in rejecting Turkey's admission has been Erdogan's piss-poor reputation regarding human rights.

The ongoing oppression against the Kurdish minority in southeastern Turkey (where they actually form the majority of the population) has worked against Erdogan, although the recent cease-fire with the Kurds after decades of armed military action and violence on both sides bolstered his reputation with the West.

For a few seconds, anyway.

Then there's Erdogan's frequent habit of imprisoning news reporters and political rivals that got too popular and could ultimately pose a threat to him in elections, especially since he had the Turkish constitution rewritten to allow himself to run for president until doomsday.

Sort of like Russia's Putin.

However, Erdogan's party has become increasingly unpopular in Turkey, and it looked as through the popular mayor of Istanbul, Ekrem Imamoglu, might unseat Erdogan in the next presidential election.

So, Erdogan had him arrested today, charging him with corruption, consorting with terrorists and a host of other nonsensical charges.

Imamoglu's real crime is that he is too popular for Erdogan's liking and is a potential threat to Erdogan becoming Turkey's "president for life."

That is not as odd as it sounds.

For all intents and purposes, that's what Putin has done, as has Alexander Lukashenko of Belarus.

And US President Donald Trump would like to do as well, IF he can get away with it.

Erdogan has also taken into custody "99 persons of interest" (Imamoglu's supporters and intimate associates),such as businessmen, other politicians and journalists for good measure, which is intended to scare the shit out of any important people who might oppose him.

Erdogan has made this a habit over his years in power.

Imamoglu's construction company and affiliated businesses were also taken into government control today, making it quite clear that Erdogan wishes to destroy him.

All of this doesn't make Erdogan or his regime look good in the eyes of the EU.

The man they looked at for one brief moment as the solution to the EU's problems in Ukraine has revived their discomfiture of Erdogan, which they never really lost.

They simply cannot trust him, and regardless of how the eventual and unfortunate situation regarding Ukraine plays out, Turkey's entrance into the EU is as far off as ever.

Erdogan has reverted to type, and old habits die hard.