Dreams of Destiny
NEED TO KNOW
Dreams of Destiny
TURKEY
Late last year, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said that Turkey needs breathing room.
“Turkey is much bigger than Turkey,” he said during a speech in December. “As a nation, we cannot limit our horizon to 782,000 square kilometers … or hide from this destiny … Those who ask, ‘What is Turkey doing in Libya, Syria, and Somalia’ may not be able to conceive this mission and vision.”
Such sentiments are making Arabs, Israelis, Europeans, and others nervous. For years, Turkey’s involvements in the Middle East, North Africa, the Horn of Africa, the Mediterranean and Aegean Seas have drawn criticism that Erdoğan is looking to resurrect the Ottoman Empire, which controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia and North Africa from the 14th to the early 20th century.
“There’s some people in Turkey … (who) believe that they could recreate the Ottoman Empire, including parts of Greece, parts of Syria, parts of Iraq, parts of Iran, half of the Caucasus, etc.,” Greek Defense Minister Nikos Dendias told Fox News. “I hope that this is a daydream.”
While Greece has long had a strained relationship with Turkey, some in the Middle East have been worried for years about Turkey’s “neo-imperialist, neo-Ottoman” approach to expansion, which Erdoğan calls the “Turkish Century.” Now, with its strong influence over its southern neighbor Syria, which deposed its longtime tyrant Bashar Assad in December, this issue is coming to a head.
Turkey has been involved in Syria for years, bankrolling the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) group that is now in control of the country, and also other rebel groups, including the Syrian National Army (SNA). In parts of northern Syria, including Idlib, the stronghold of the HTS, it’s more Turkish than Syrian: Stores display Turkish products, which are paid for in Turkish lira. Schools, clinics, and electricity are provided by Turkey. Mobile phones use Turkish SIM cards.
Since the new Syrian government came to power, Turkish officials became the first foreign delegation to make official visits and have offered to advise it on governance issues and a new constitution. Turkish businessmen are eyeing opportunities in Syria for expansion. The country has also offered to train and equip Syria’s new army. Last week, Syria and Turkey discussed a new defense pact that could see Turkish bases on Syrian soil.
One tricky issue, however, is the Kurds. The US allied with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) a decade ago to fight the terrorist Islamic State group. However, Turkey sees the Kurds as its enemy and has attacked and forced their retreat, occupying parts of their territory in northern Syria.
“Turkey wants to smother Kurdish autonomy in Syria’s north, help build a new Syrian army, and regain influence in a country it once controlled for 400 years,” wrote the Economist.
Now Turkey wants the Kurds’ militias, including the People’s Protection Units (YPG) and the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), both of which it views as “terrorists”, to disarm. The leader of Syria, Ahmed al-Sharaa of the HTS, wants to integrate all Kurdish units into Syria’s new army along with the SNA. The US, meanwhile, wants to protect its allies in the SDF – and thousands of US troops who work with them, and allow them to continue to fight Islamic State. The Kurds, meanwhile, want autonomy.
Meanwhile, Turkey, a majority Sunni Muslim nation, has long had a rivalry with the other powerful Sunni nations in the region, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and the United Arab Emirates, for influence over the Arab world. Now pleased that Syria has broken free from the Iranian dominance under the Assads, these players don’t want Iran replaced by Turkey.
At the same time, Israel is nervous that Turkey may gain access to Syrian airspace and deploy air defenses or other weapons there because it could extend Turkey’s influence to the Golan Heights and even Lebanon, helping Hamas: “Turkey is already one of the most hostile countries to Israel – in public statements and its backing of Hamas,” wrote the Jerusalem Post.
Turkey, meanwhile, fears Israeli expansionism, seeing it as a threat to its security, wrote the Daily Sabah, a Turkish newspaper.
Analysts say a number of countries are nervous because they have seen Turkey try to increase its control over the Mediterranean as part of its “Blue Homeland Doctrine,” for example, in its controversial mineral deal with Libya a few years ago, which caused issues in NATO – Turkey is a member as is Greece. They also point to Turkish meddling in the Armenian-Azerbaijan conflict.
The Horn of Africa and the Red Sea are another combined source of contention, especially for Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates, all of whom consider the region in their sphere of influence and covet its mineral riches and strategic position, as well as its development potential.
Turkey has been expanding its influence there over the years, signing defense and economic cooperation agreements with Ethiopia, Djibouti, and especially Somalia, where it is deeply integrated into the economy and its military and where it has a military base. It’s played mediator between Ethiopia and Somalia and supported the government of Sudan in its civil war. More than 30 African states have security cooperation agreements with Turkey.
Still, it’s Turkey’s move to make peace with the Kurds after decades of conflict that could allow Turkey to achieve its “destiny,” say analysts.
Since last year, Turkey has been in peace talks with the PKK’s leader, Abdullah Öcalan, who has been in jail for decades. Turkey wants Öcalan to renounce violence, which he may do this month. If he does, Turkey may end its four-decade war on the Kurds and integrate the Kurds into Turkey’s constitution, governance, and society. It will also, Turkey hopes, neutralize them in Syria, where they control one-third of the country and most of the oil fields. In Iraq, it hopes it will sideline the elements of the PKK there – Turkey already has a good relationship with the Kurdish leaders of Iraqi Kurdistan. Meanwhile, it will undercut Israel’s outreach to Kurds and unify Turkey and Erdoğan’s hold over it.
The biggest obstacle to this plan – and Turkey’s expansion over Kurdish regions outside of its borders – is the United States, wrote Foreign Affairs. But in spite of a push by US officials to maintain its relationship with its Kurdish allies in Syria, the magazine notes that President Donald Trump has been vague about maintaining the 2,000 US troops there, saying recently, “They don’t need us involved.”
THE WORLD, BRIEFLY
Sidelined
UKRAINE
Ukraine and its European allies expressed shock and concern following a phone call between US President Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin over plans to meet for peace negotiations, raising fears that Kyiv’s future will be decided without its participation, the Washington Post reported Thursday.
On Wednesday, the US leader held separate calls with Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to discuss ending the war in Ukraine. Trump later told reporters, “I think we’re on the way to getting peace,” but remained vague about Ukraine’s role in negotiations.
The White House confirmed that Trump and Putin plan to meet soon, likely in Saudi Arabia, while Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said it was “premature” to discuss any role for Europe in the process.
But the announcement unsettled European leaders, particularly those in NATO, where officials have long insisted that Ukraine must be directly involved in any negotiations.
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock described the Trump-Putin call as “out of the blue,” while French Defense Minister Sébastien Lecornu said the situation was a “moment of political truth” that could have lasting consequences for European security.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk added on X, “Ukraine, Europe, and the United States should work together – TOGETHER,” urging unity against potential US-Russia back-channel negotiations.
Similarly, Zelenskyy reacted sharply, stressing that his country “will not accept any agreements made without us.”
The development follows a shift in US policy that has alarmed Ukraine. US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told NATO leaders in Brussels that returning to Ukraine’s pre-2014 borders was “unrealistic” and that NATO membership should not be considered part of a peace settlement, according to Euronews.
The statements have raised concerns that Washington is making concessions to Moscow before negotiations even begin, weakening Ukraine’s position at the bargaining table.
Mykola Bilieskov, a political analyst linked to the Ukrainian presidential office, called it “frightening” that Washington appears willing to shape a settlement at Ukraine’s expense.
“Russia would pocket everything and then violate all promises,” he told the Washington Post, adding that such an agreement would not be accepted by the Ukrainian public.
Some Ukrainian officials expressed private frustration, with one military officer calling the US “an unreliable partner” and describing Trump’s call as “the greatest disappointment” in US-Ukraine relations.
Despite concerns, other officials remain cautiously hopeful that the situation is still evolving, noting that it was too early to assess the full implications of Trump’s outreach to Putin.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine will mark its three-year anniversary later this month. Next week, the Munich Security Conference in Germany will hold its annual meeting. Zelenskyy is expected to meet with senior US officials to push for stronger security guarantees, Radio Free Europe wrote.
Nothing To Hide
LIBERIA
Liberian President Joseph Boakai suspended more than 450 senior officials this week for failing to declare their assets to the anti-corruption agency, part of his campaign pledge to fight graft in the West African country, the BBC reported.
The suspension comes after the Liberia Anti-Corruption Commission (LACC) published a list of 457 officials, including government ministers and ambassadors, who failed to declare what they own before a November deadline.
Under Liberia’s code of conduct for state officials, all public officials must declare their wealth before taking office and after leaving their government positions.
The presidency said the individuals would be suspended without pay for a month or “until they submit the required declarations.” It emphasized that their failure to comply with the asset declaration “undermines national efforts to combat corruption and ensure accountability.”
Elected in November 2023, Boakai has pledged to root out corruption in the nation of five million, Agence France-Presse noted.
Last year, he announced he was reducing his salary by 40 percent, hoping the move would set a precedent for “responsible governance” and demonstrate “solidarity” with Liberians.
His predecessor, George Weah, faced accusations of corruption and lavish spending, sparking mass demonstrations amid a rise in the cost of living.
Liberia, one of the poorest countries in the world, ranks 135th out of 180 countries on Transparency International’s corruption perceptions index.
While some analysts welcomed Boakai’s decision, civil rights groups described it as insufficient and “a slap on the wrist.”
‘Not Lemons’
BELGIUM
Tens of thousands of people took to the streets of Belgium Thursday in protest of planned cuts to public services and a pension reform plan, on the first day of a multi-day nationwide strike that halted much of the country, Reuters reported.
About 60,000 people joined the anti-government strike in Brussels, demonstrating against the government’s plan to cut funds to public services and reforms to pensions that will penalize lower-income earners.
Some protesters held signs with slogans such as “We’re not lemons,” while others clashed with police outside the headquarters of the two center-right parties – the Mouvement Réformateur and Les Engages – both members of the governing coalition.
The strike disrupted public transportation and the postal service, with firefighters and military personnel joining the protests.
About 430 flights at Brussels, Charleroi, Liège, Antwerp, and Ostend airports were canceled on Thursday after baggage handlers and air traffic controllers walked off the job, Politico reported.
The pension reform plan will reward those who work past the legal retirement age – with 35 years of service – and penalize those who retire early. The current system doesn’t make such a distinction.
The new coalition government – sworn in on Feb. 3 after eight months of negotiations and led by Prime Minister Bart De Wever – is made up of five parties, including the Right, centrists, and the socialist party.
DISCOVERIES
Sound Muscles
Our evolutionary ancestors lost the ability to swivel their ears like dogs or cats millions of years ago.
However, vestigial ear muscles – remnants from our evolutionary past – still activate when focusing on a sound or when hearing becomes difficult, according to a new study in Frontiers in Neuroscience.
“There are three large muscles which connect the auricle to the skull and scalp and are important for ear wiggling,” lead author Andreas Schröer of Saarland University explained in a statement. “These muscles, particularly the superior auricular muscle, exhibit increased activity during effortful listening tasks.”
To test this, researchers wired up 20 participants with electrodes and played an audiobook while adding distracting background noise.
As the difficulty increased, participants’ superior auricular muscles – responsible for pulling the ear upward – activated more, as if trying to fine-tune hearing. When sounds came from behind, another set of muscles, the posterior auricular muscles, reacted as if attempting to rotate the ears backward.
The study builds on previous research showing that these muscles can still generate faint electrical signals, even if they no longer move human ears effectively.
“The exact reason these became vestigial is difficult to tell,” Schröer said. “One possible explanation could be that the evolutionary pressure to move the ears ceased because we became much more proficient with our visual and vocal systems.”
While the tiny ear twitches likely don’t improve hearing, this discovery could have practical applications. A future hearing aid that tracks ear muscle activity could detect when a person is struggling to hear and automatically adjust volume or settings.
“We have very, very good hearing aids now … and yet people still aren’t happy wearing them sometimes,” Alexander Francis, a professor at Purdue University who was not involved in the study, told NPR.
Matthew Winn, an audiology professor at the University of Minnesota, told NPR that the findings were compelling but suggested more research is needed to confirm whether the muscle activity directly reflects listening effort or is just frustration with background noise.