The Trump administration is setting the entire Middle East region ablaze, threatening to drag the world into a catastrophe of unimaginable proportions. As the war escalates, with Israel invading Lebanon and Iran striking US bases and closing the Strait of Hormuz, concern is mounting within the Turkish political establishment.

Calls for a ceasefire and negotiations are taking centre stage.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said in a statement on Monday that the attacks targeting Iran were “illegal,” adding, “Our priority is to secure a ceasefire and open the door to dialogue. If the necessary intervention is not made, the conflict will have serious consequences for regional and global security. No one can bear the economic and geopolitical uncertainties that such a process would create. Therefore, the fire must be extinguished before it grows any further.”

Erdoğan refrains from condemning the aggressiveness of the US under the leadership of his “friend” Trump, while primarily targeting his regional rival Israel and holding it responsible for the war. The Turkish president has at the same time characterized Iran’s act of legitimate self-defense in targeting US bases as an attack on the sovereignty of other countries.

On Sunday, Erdoğan stated on X that he was “saddened by the death of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei as a result of the attacks carried out,” following his assassination by the US and Israel. He did not condemn the killing of the leader of a sovereign state and failed to even mention the fact that the attack was carried out by US-Israeli forces, let alone that the order to attack Khamenei was approved by his “friend” Trump.

Ankara nevertheless fears that this imperialist attack, which could lead to the collapse of the Iranian regime, could in turn increase Israel’s influence on its own borders, trigger a new wave of migrants, and encourage separatist initiatives by Kurdish nationalist forces linked to the US and Israel. Türkiye, a NATO member hosting US bases, could quickly be drawn into the vortex of war. The global rise in oil and natural gas prices already caused by the conflict will further deepen the cost-of-living crisis in Türkiye, intensifying class tensions.

Despite these risks and concerns, Ankara’s policy is guided by the Turkish bourgeoisie and the state’s thousands of economic, military, and strategic ties to US-NATO imperialism and international financial capital. Even as the war escalated by US imperialism to establish complete domination in the Middle East drags the entire region, including Türkiye, into disaster, Ankara’s policy seeks to protect its interests by aligning with Trump’s policies.

Republican People’s Party (CHP) leader Özgür Özel said in a speech Monday that they oppose the US-Israel attack on Iran: “We reject exposing our region to interventions by the US and Israel that disregard international law and do not hesitate to target innocent civilians. With this understanding, we oppose the attack on our neighbor Iran.”

Özel also criticized the Erdoğan government’s stance, saying, “We absolutely cannot accept the Justice and Development Party government’s stance of standing by the Trump administration under all circumstances, and its shy and timid attitude towards the new world order desires based on the aggression of the United States and Israel, as if it had staked its entire existence on it.”

Özel criticized the dismantling of international law under Trump’s leadership, continuing: “We are witnessing how the United States and Israel are attempting to establish a system where they can intervene in any country they choose, use force to change regimes, and seize territory, as seen in the cases of Palestine, Venezuela, Syria, Greenland, and Iran.”

However, the CHP, which defends the interests of the same ruling class as Erdoğan and voices the same concerns, was unable to advance its opposition as far as promising to take steps to end Türkiye’s subordination to imperialism and NATO once it came to power. Instead, Özel assured that his party’s pro-European Union and pro-NATO stance would not change, stating, “We will take all steps towards full membership in the European Union quickly and effectively.”

In a statement, Ekrem İmamoğlu, the imprisoned mayor of Istanbul and potential presidential candidate from the CHP, said, “Türkiye, due to its historical and geographical responsibility, should never take sides in this conflict... Our national interests are protected not by personal relationships established with the US, but by rational diplomacy pursued with the goal of regional stability.”

The CHP’s criticism of the Trump administration is a pragmatic manoeuvre seeking to exploit overwhelming popular opposition to the US and Israel. Only 4 percent of participants in a public opinion poll conducted by Asal Research in 26 provinces support Israel in the war. The overwhelming majority (72.5 percent) preferred Turkey to act as a mediator, reflecting their concern about the war, while 16 percent stated that Iran should be supported.

A report submitted by the CHP to NATO in September reveals the party’s true stance. The report echoed US and Israeli propaganda, declaring Iran the source of regional instability and recommending NATO’s expansion into Middle Eastern countries.

While there is no verified information that US and NATO bases in Türkiye have been directly used in attacks on Iran, it is acknowledged that the radar base in Kürecik and AWACS surveillance aircraft taking off from Konya provide intelligence for US-Israeli forces.

The situation at the Adana-İncirlik air base used by the US is particularly noteworthy. At the weekend, ANKA News Agency Editor-in-Chief Kenan Şener, Koza TV General Manager Mehlika Bilen, and two reporters were detained for broadcasting live on ANKA News Agency’s social media account under the headline, “Operational activity at Incirlik Air Base.” After giving their statements, the journalists were released with a restriction on leaving the country and under judicial supervision.

It has been announced that restrictions have been imposed on passenger crossings at the Ağrı-Gürbulak, Van-Kapıköy, and Hakkâri-Esendere border gates between Türkiye and Iran. Only commercial cargo and Turkish citizens will be allowed to cross from Iran.

This is a step to prevent civilians from fleeing to Türkiye in the event of an escalation of imperialist aggression in Iran, despite Erdoğan’s claim that they stand “with the brotherly Iranian people.” In recent days, it was claimed that a plan for the Turkish Armed Forces to enter Iran and establish a buffer zone to prevent such a wave of migration was being discussed in Ankara. This was denied by the Ministry of National Defense.

Meanwhile, the statement issued by “the Alliance of Political Forces of Iranian Kurdistan,” formed by Kurdish nationalist forces in Iran following the US-Israel attack, confirmed the accuracy of the Socialist Equality Party’s analysis of this alliance’s pro-imperialist and reactionary character.

The alliance, which refuses to oppose the imperialist attack by the US and Israel aimed at colonizing Iran, an oppressed country, declared in its statement that “this war is not a conflict between Iranian society and its nations on one hand, and the United States, Israel, or the international community on the other.”

It called on the Iranian armed forces in Kurdistan to “separate from the remnants of the Islamic Republic,” stating, “We advise them not to miss this final opportunity to turn their backs on the enemy [the Iranian regime] and choose the side of their own nation.”

Alhurra reported that the headquarters of four Iranian Kurdish parties in the territory of the Kurdistan Regional Government of Iraq were attacked by Iranian drones on Sunday.

According to an analysis published Monday by the Israel-based Zionist JFEED, “Israeli jets have initiated strikes on Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) border guard positions along the Iraq-Iran frontier. These attacks... could facilitate the return of armed Iranian Kurdish opposition groups currently based in Iraq’s Kurdistan Region.”

The experiences of the Kurdish people and the peoples of the Middle East since the beginning of the 20th century are filled with countless examples showing that imperialist aggression leads not to freedom and democracy, but to massacre, plunder, and increased oppression. The task of fighting against the bourgeois-clerical regime in Iran falls to the working class of all nationalities in Iran. This requires a principled struggle against imperialist aggression targeting all the peoples of Iran and the Middle East, regardless of the reactionary character of the regime. This is inextricably linked to the struggle for a Socialist Federation of the Middle East.

The Sosyalist Eşitlik Partisi (Socialist Equality Party), together with its sister parties affiliated with the International Committee of the Fourth International (ICFI) in the United States, Europe, and around the world, is fighting to build an international anti-war movement based on the working class and puts forward the following demands:

●       The war waged by the US and Israel against Iran must be stopped immediately and unconditionally.

●       All US armed forces in the Middle East must be withdrawn, and military bases, including in Türkiye, that serve as the infrastructure of imperialist domination must be closed.

●       The NATO summit to be held in Ankara in July must be cancelled, Türkiye must leave NATO, NATO must be dissolved, and all resources spent on militarism and war must be reallocated in line with the needs of society.

●       All sanctions and economic warfare against Iran and all other countries must end.

●       All war criminals must be held accountable.