Alirza Quluncu, Voice of America, April 29, 2021
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| Mehmet Rıza Heyet |
Turkologist scholar Mehmet Rıza Heyet, in a conversation with Voice of America, states that "Turkic communities without a state, including the Turks in Iran, under the current circumstances, can only have expectations from the Cooperation Council of Turkic-Speaking States (Turkic Council) in cultural and artistic fields."
"For about 70 years, the Turkic world lived unaware of one another. Even the Turkic republics within the former Soviet Union were isolated from each other. That is, despite being in the same country, they also experienced a separation and each pursued their political lives with different identities. However, with the dissolution of the Soviet Union, a process began, and reaching the current level took a long time. Because the issue of identity prolonged this disconnection. However, the Turkic republics coming together again under a Turkic identity, feeling the need for cooperation, and believing that this unity would have a bright future led them to join a structured union," he explains.
According to Mehmet Rıza Heyet, "There are two serious concerns regarding the unification of Turkic states. First, there is a sense of hesitation among Turks themselves. They are somewhat afraid of rapprochement. There are reasons for this: events of the past century, accusations of Turanism and Pan-Turkism, and the attacks against Turks based on these accusations. Because of this, in the beginning, there was caution. Secondly, the world was also closely monitoring whether these newly independent Turkic republics would form a large union and what its global impact would be. Taking these two factors into account, the initial pace of activities was very slow."
The head of the Tabriz Research Institute highlights that, in recent years, the situation has changed significantly in favor of the Turkic Council:
"In recent years, particularly with the formation of new alliances in the region and changes in geopolitical equations, a serious move towards unity has begun. After the recent Karabakh war, this process moved from words to action. That is, they have practically seen the benefits of this alliance. Even non-Turkic republics have observed this."
Mehmet Rıza Heyet notes that the Turkic Council will not have a direct impact on stateless Turks for now.
"However, it will have great indirect effects. Firstly, in places like Iran, the prestige and respectability of Turks have always been targeted. That is, there has been an attempt to psychologically suppress them. The establishment of such an organization and its increasing influence in global affairs will inevitably boost the self-confidence of Turks in Iran. This is the least benefit it will provide. Secondly, the decisions made within this body will directly affect Turks in Iran as well. For example, if a common communication language is decided upon or decisions regarding the alphabet are made, these will also have an effect on the Turks in Iran."
He emphasizes that, for now, the expectations of stateless Turks from the Turkic Council should be limited to cultural matters, but in the future, these expectations may extend to other areas:
"In the future, I am certain that their issues can be brought to the attention of the international community through the Turkic Council. But for now, our expectations from the Turkic Council should primarily be in the cultural sphere. This organization can achieve a lot in this area—for instance, from book publications to festivals or programs allowing young people and children to stay in a Turkic republic for two weeks or a month. At the same time, I think the Turkic Council may have certain demands from Iran in this regard... In any case, we must first assess what this organization is capable of before forming expectations. Otherwise, expecting them to confront states directly is not possible under the current circumstances," Heyet states.
The Ankara University lecturer believes that "to maintain unity among Turkic communities, their relationships must be transformed into economic interests."
According to him, "Emotional relationships can be shaken, and it is easier to create obstacles or sow discord. Such relationships may not last long. Therefore, these kinship and brotherhood ties must inevitably be turned into economic interests. The guarantee and assurance of these relationships' continuity lie in economic benefits."
Link to the original interview in Turkish on the Azerbaijani section of Voice of America:
Məhəmməd Rza Heyət: Dövləti olmayan türklərin Türk Şurasından gözləntiləri indilik mədəni sahələrdə ola bilər