Turkic World and Turkistan

The Concept of the Turkish World

For the majority of the people in Turkey, this 'ancient' concept is considered quite new. Geographical, historical, cultural, etc., formed by all Turks living in the world, with the concepts of Turkish world or foreign Turks. unity and integrity that emerges with values ​​are expressed. Just as a Commonwealth of Nations, the Arab world, a community of Portuguese-speaking nations, a group of Spanish-speaking countries, etc. If there is, the concept of "Turkish World" is used to reflect the unity of the Turks.

At the root of this approach is not only ethnic unity. The Concept of the Turkish World; It covers everyone who is proud of being Turkish, embraces the common past, lives in different geographies in this sense, but sees himself as a Turkish or Turkic society in any case, thus describing the formation and preservation of cultural closeness among Turkish tribes, in short, "I am a Happy Turk".

Famous Turcologists such as W. Thomsen and G. Nemeth have come to the conclusion that the word 'turk' or 'türük', which is used as an adjective and means 'strong' in Uighur, has become a noun and expresses the Turkish nation. Scholars such as Munkacsi, on the other hand, argued that the Turkish name comes from the root of 'deremek'. Considering that the word "Yürük" (walking), which is used for custom (custom, tradition) and nomadic societies, is also connected to this root, it has been the most popular approach etymologically that the Turkish name means a derived, created, human being.

The concept of the Turkish World, which gathers all Turks under one roof; It could be argued that it evokes an invitation to political union or a referral to geographical unification. Indeed, when talking about the Turkish World, a very wide geography from the Adriatic to the Great Wall of China is mentioned. In fact, the Turkish world; It embraces a wide spectrum with its historical and cultural influence areas that cross geographical borders. This concept therefore also points to a wide-dimensional geography that includes Turkey. Although the Republic of Turkey is naturally at the center of this concept, when we look at it from a historical perspective, the geography named Turkistan sits at the center of the Turkish World.

History is a branch of science that arises from movements that affect communities, nations, organizations, tells the events by showing time and place, examines the relations behind these events, their connections with previous and subsequent events, their mutual influences, the civilizations established by each nation, and its internal problems. In this sense, history instills the action of the Turkish World that has been going on for thousands of years, the national consciousness behind this action, and the future predictions based on this consciousness in today's Turks. He informs them of the existence of new gates for the Turks to advance in the most correct direction.

As we have revealed in our East Turkestan articles that we published in STRASAM, no matter how much the events taking place in the case of the Uyghurs, a Turkish tribe, seem to be tied to the past, history is actually based on the needs of the present and the present situation in which these events play out.

According to legends and rumors, the emergence of the 'Turkish' tribes on the stage of history goes back to the Scythians (Sakalar) recorded in 800-700 BC. Sakalar were divided into two at that time, some of them migrated west from the Tian Shan-Fergana Valley-Kasgar region and the other part remained around the Aral Lake, around the Seyhun river. Every event in history is based on three basic facts: Time, Society and Space. Every historical event has an aspect that looks at the present. Every historical event is important and valuable. An event in the past Time, such as the movement of the Saka, was an event that had a primary impact on the tribes living in the region. This event gradually played a role in shaping Turkish community life and introduced the rest of the world to the Turkish phenomenon. This place, where the Turks were seen for the first time on the stage of history, paved the way for the Turkish World to embrace this historical region called 'Turkistan' in the middle of Eurasia as their homeland until today.

Development of Turkestan's Geography

Since the centers of states founded by Huns, Göktürks, Uyghurs and other Turkish tribes in ancient times were located in the Orhun region, based on the work published by the French historian Joseph de Guignes between 1756-1758 (Histore des Huns, des Turcs, ….) Among some Turkish historians, the view that Mongolia (including present-day Southern Mongolia within the borders of China) was the homeland of the Turks. According to this view, it is claimed that the original homeland of the Turks was Mongolia, and that they came to the west, that is, to the Turkestan and Transoxiana region, in the seventh century AD. However, the homeland of the ancient Turks is Turkistan, as seen in the Oghuzname studies. The Turks later entered Iran and beyond in the west, Mongolia in the east and south as a conquering nation.

In order to better understand the origins of Turkestan and Turkism, we need to open the subject a little more at this point. old FaSome Turkish tribes in Turkestan, which were adversely affected by the eastward expeditions of the Persian empires, Alexander's and the Islamic armies and the establishment of the Samanid state in Transoxiana, migrated to the east and acquired new homes for themselves, as we can see with the Uyghurs who settled in East Turkestan in the mid-800s. . In fact, such great historical wars and important social movements enabled the Turkish World to expand in all directions. Thus, it was possible for the Turkish presence to continue in different geographies, under different names and administrations.

Undoubtedly, Turkic tribes lived in Mongolia, in Siberia in the north, in Manchuria in the southeast, and even in the interior of modern China. However, Turkistan, not Mongolia, was accepted as the homeland of the Turks. Today's research based on historical, linguistic and epic evidence has revealed that the Turkish homeland is the region called Turkestan between the Altai-Ural mountains. As an example, Pompenius, one of the 1st century Latin writers, mentioned that a Turkae tribe lived between the Ural (Yayik) and Itil (Idil, Volga) rivers.

In this way, the Oghuz Epic describes the Sir river basin as the homeland of the Oghuzs. Chinese sources also mention that before the Gokturks established an independent state, they settled in the south of the Altays and were engaged in blacksmithing. This is the place that Turkish national traditions call "Ergenekon". During the Hun and Gokturk era, the Turks made it a tradition to sacrifice to God and the spirits of their ancestors, to perform religious rites and holidays on the eighth day of the fifth month of each year.

The Islamic version of the Oghuz epic narrated Oguzhan as the grandson of Yafes. The holy books also narrated the homeland of 'Turk', the son of Yafes, one of the three sons of Noah (Hâm, Sâ and Yâfes), in the region of Işık-göl again. While Prophet Noah was dividing the known world of that day among these three sons, he gave the land beyond the Ceyhun (Amu derya) river, namely historical Turkestan, to Yâfes, who is considered the ancestor of the Turks. According to the Iranian national epic Shahnameh, Feridûn gave Turkestan and all the eastern countries (including China) to Tur or Tûrec, the ancestor of the Turks. Similar to Persian sources, Chinese sources also wrote that their mythological ancestor, the Hia, and the Hiung-nu, whom they considered as the ancestors of the Turks, came from the same root.

Chinese, Greek and Arab sources also mentioned the traditional border drawn between the Turanian and Iranian tribes as the Ceyhun river. Oğuzhan, who was the hero of the famous Iranian-Turanian struggles in history and called Afrasyab by the Iranians, made the city of Merv his capital. The states established by the Turks in history paved the way for the proliferation of Turkish tribes in Transoxiana, East Turkestan, Afghanistan and Khorasan, and for them to continue their lives predominantly in these regions.

On the other hand, the fact that the Turkish states were mostly based in Turkestan and later established towards the west caused the Turkish tribes to be in an increasing migration traffic to the west with these states. Especially since the 10th century, the settled Turkish tribe remained in the Mongolia region in very few numbers, and the existence of the Turks in this geography came to the point of extinction with Genghishan. This region is now called Mongolia with the Mongols coming from the east.

In the 11th century, the Seljuks expanded the borders of the Turkish provinces. By the 13th century, Turkestan or Turk-il (Arz ut-Turk) had spread from the borders of China and India to the Greek and Russian countries and was recorded by historians as a quarter of the world. In the same period, European travelers showed all regions extending from the Danube to the Altai mountains, including Kipchak-province, as Great 'Turkia'. Thus, the name Turkistan or Turkey included large countries within their borders according to the spread of the Turks. On the other hand, 10th century Islamic geographers preferred to use the name Turk for non-Muslim Turks. In this sense, the name Turkistan was used by the Arabs for the countries outside the borders of Islam and beyond Fârâb and even Talas. However, the Arab thinker Jahiz was impressed by the existence of unity among Turks (Muslim Turks and Turks who had not yet converted to Islam). He acknowledged the 'glue' role played by the Turkish language union at that time, saying, "The difference between the Khorasan language and the Turkish language is similar to the difference between the dialects of Mecca and Medina."

As a result, the change of religion, culture and eras over the centuries has led to changes in the geographies where the Turks live. In this context, the borders of Turkestan, the homeland of the Turks, have also undergone changes. The interaction between the Turkish tribes, who established strong empires (Seljuks, Ottomans, Mamluks, etc.) in the west of the historical Turkestan basin, has always continued, albeit in a loose structure in some periods. After the French Revolution of 1789 The nationalist movements that emerged in Turkey have penetrated the Turkish world quite late. The Turks in the Turkestan region fought relentless wars against the Russian and Chinese armies in order to establish Turkish unity and to rule the lands they live as independent states. In the Cold War balance between the blocks that emerged after the Second World War, despite the atrocities of Stalin and his successors, who did not take kindly to the development of Turkish nationalism in the Turkestan region, the Turks were able to preserve their customs, traditions and customs to a certain extent. A similar situation was also valid for the Uyghur Turks, who struggled to exist in the People's Republic of China.

Geographical Boundaries of Turkestan

Today, instead of the word Turkestan, Western-style geographical nomenclatures such as Central Asia are being used instead of cultural and historical namings. In our opinion, this type of nomenclature based solely on geography is an erroneous usage that we sometimes use unconsciously. In fact, it must be Turkestan, as it has been used for thousands of years.

Turkestan; It is divided into four parts: West Turkestan, East Turkestan, South (Afghan) Turkestan and Iranian Turkestan:

East Turkestan; Today, it is the part of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, which is located in the northeast of China, within the borders of this country, because the majority of the people living in the region are Uyghurs. It has an area of ​​approximately 1.8 million km², more than twice the size of Turkey. It is the largest Turkish territory after Kazakhstan.

West Turkestan; It is the region that includes Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan and has the largest surface area of ​​Turkestan (approximately 4 million km²). It is a very wide geography, stretching from the mouth of the Volga River to the Caspian Sea, from the Ural mountains to Southern Siberia, surrounded by the Altai Mountains in the east and Kopet Mountain, Bend-i Turkistan, Hindu Kush and Tian Shan Mountains in the south.

South Turkestan; He is in Afghanistan. It covers the area in the north of this country, stretching from Bend-i Turkistan and Hindukuş mountain ranges to Ceyhun Valley and West Turkestan Çukureli. Its important city is Mazar-i-Sharif.

Iranian Turkestan; It is on Iranian territory. It is the region that includes Iran's Estarabad and Deregiz provinces.

The Collapse of the Soviet Union and Turkistan-Turkey Relations

After the Cold War, with the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1990, the autonomous Turkic republics within the Soviet borders gained their independence. However, the same situation could not be valid for today's Uyghuristan, which is under the Chinese administration.

The disintegration of the Soviet Union has created new opportunities and, in a way, new risks for Turkish foreign policy. The doors of the Turkish World, which was previously closed to Turkey in a way, were suddenly opened wide.

Along with the Turkic republics that emerged in Central Asia, Turkey also became the leader of the Turkic world. Issues such as transferring his achievements to these countries and taking sides with these young and inexperienced country governments in international relations started to come to the fore. As a result of this, in the interstate conjuncture, Turkey's weight has increased to some extent in this framework, and new balances have begun to be sought that takes Turkey and other related states and communities into account.

In this period, both Turkish decision makers and international actors expressed similar approaches about Turkey and the Turkish world. American statesman Henry Kissinger spoke of a Turkish world stretching from the "Adriatic to the Great Wall of China". Likewise, the President of the time, Özal, said, “21. He expressed his expectation by saying that this century will be the Turkish century. He saw Turkistan as an area that would expand Turkey's influence and increase its strategic importance for the West. After Atatürk, with the effect of the developments during and after the Second World War, Turkey consciously avoided attempts to establish closeness with Turkish and Islamic societies outside its borders. In the 1990s, Turkish foreign policy, in a way, again turned Turkey's face to the east. In particular, he sought to improve his relations with Turkic communities in Turkestan, where the Russians did not even allow close contact with Turkey at the time.

The contact between Turkey and the autonomous Turkic republics affiliated to the Soviets began to increase in the mid-1980s, when the Soviets began to weaken. Later, as these republics started to find a place for themselves on the world stage as an independent state, there was a dizzying contact traffic between Turkey and these new Turkic States. Official visits were made under the leadership of the Presidents of the period, businessmen and the state bureaucracy were in close contact with these newly established countries, providing political support, and a favorable environment was created. realization of economic investments in these countries, etc. has been encouraged.

Especially in the field of education and culture, close contact was established between Turkey and Turkic States and related communities in a short time, and the way was paved for the signing of important projects together.

In this context, the unifying power of Turkish has been utilized. Turkish societies, living in a wide geographical area from the past to the present, from the Balkans to China, have continued to speak 'derivatives' of a language, although they have had different ways of speaking in different states. The unity of origin of Turkish is based on Orkhon monuments in the 8th century by linguists.

When we talk about the Turkish language, Kaşgarlı Mahmud's famous dictionary Divânu Lûgatit-Türk is important. Ali Şir Nevaî is one of the important milestones in the unity and richness of Turkish, demonstrating with examples that Turkish language is not inferior to Persian and has many unique beauties and delicacies. Nevaî likened his mother tongue, Turkish, to pearls at the bottom of the sea full of thorns and stones. In this context, İsmail Gaspıralı, who made a name for himself with his efforts to ensure the unity of Turkish language and tried to implement the slogan of "unity in language, work and thought", is also a prominent lover of Turkish unity. Again, Sadri Maksudi, who was originally from Kazan and knew Idil-Ural, Turkestan and Turkey very well, revealed in the 1930s that the Turkish world actually used a single and common Turkish language.

The independence of the Turkic republics from the Soviets can be seen as a breaking point for the Turkic world and Turkishness. Now, for real independence, it is necessary to reflect the common values ​​of the kin communities living within the borders of the Turkic states, that is, these freedoms gained through their unique characteristics such as language, religion, customs, and lifestyle. Undoubtedly, the most important of these common features that make up independence is the unity of language, language. In very general terms, language precedes the development of the consciousness and desire to be a "nation" by gathering human communities around a purpose and forming a common feeling and thought unity among them. When a nation or nation gains its independence, it becomes possible to gain independence in political, social and economic life depending on the progress made in the field of language.

The Turkish states' acceptance of their own language as the state language was the most important step towards gaining their independence. The Turkish language, which is divided into various branches, should be brought together on a "common" ground in a way to ensure communication between these states and related communities. The way to this is to implement joint projects in the field of education and culture as much as possible, and to bring together those who feel Turkish by making use of all kinds of communication means. Joint art, collaborative literary works act as catalysts that can open the door for this.

Turkey's relationship with the Turkic States develops within the framework of mutual sovereignty and respect for its territorial integrity. First of all, Turkey, in a way, has preoccupied itself with İsmail Gaspıralı's motto "Unity in Language, Idea, and Work". It has tried to develop its search for cooperation with these countries in this direction. In this sense, intergovernmental organizations such as the Turkic-Speaking Countries Summit, Turkic Council, Parliamentary Assembly of Turkic-Speaking Countries (TurkPA), Joint Administration of Turkic Culture and Arts (TÜRKSOY) and the Turkish States and Communities Friendship, Brotherhood and Cooperation Congress are important for the Turkic World. created to fulfill its functions.

In addition, the fact that the Turkic republics have recently started to use the Latin alphabet instead of Cyrillic, following a similar path to the alphabet reform of Atatürk's Turkey, has the potential to open the door to positive developments in the Turkish world. The use of a common alphabet is of great importance in terms of establishing a linguistic and cultural unity for the Turkish world. In the 1926-1940 period, the people of these countries, who already had experience with the Latin Alphabet, have successfully demonstrated in the past that they have the infrastructure to switch to the Latin Alphabet again.

The spectrum that emerges when we consider the current expansion areas of the Turkish language, which we see as the cement of Turkishness, and the branches of the Turkish language (dialect, dialect, dialect) are as follows:

Turkey Turkish (general), Gagauz Turkish (Moldova, Ukraine, Romania and Bulgaria), Azerbaijan Turkish (Azerbaijan, Georgia and Iran), Turkmen Turkish (Turkmenistan, Khorasan, Afghanistan and Pakistan), Uzbek Turkish (Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Afghanistan) , Tajikistan and Pakistan), Uyghur Turkish (East Turkestan and Kazakhstan), Kazakh Turkish (Kazakhstan, Mongolia and East Turkestan), Karakalpak Turkish (Karakalpak / Uzbekistan), Kyrgyz Turkish (Kyrgyzstan and East Turkestan), Kazan-Tatar Turkish (Tatarstan) , Bashkir Turkish (Bashkortostan), Nogai-Karachay-Balkar-Kumuk Turkish (Northern N Africa), Altai Turkish (Altai/Russia region), Khakas-Abakan Turkish (Tuva/Russia and Kansu/China regions), Tuvan Turkish (Tuva-Russia and Mongolia), Yakut Turkish (Yakutia/Russia), Chuvash Turkish (Chuvashia/ Russia) and Karaite Turkish (Poland and Lithuania).

It is Turkey's historically indispensable duty to lead the efforts to establish a common ideal and cultural unity with the Turkic communities that share the geography of Turkestan, through minimal linguistic unity. Closer cooperation with Turkish-speaking countries should be among the priorities of Turkish foreign policy. However, at the point of advocating closer cooperation and cultural unity, racist-based pan-Turanism or pan-Turkism formations can have an accelerating effect on the ethnic division in the countries of the region, which disrupts the internal structures of both Turkey and the states in Turkestan with which it is contacted. Moreover, a weak Turkey, steeped in internal instability and internal problems, cannot have the power to maintain a consistent policy towards Turkestan.

For this reason, we find it beneficial to always act in accordance with the dynamics and realities of Atatürk's nationalism in the expansions on the axis of Turkestan. It should not be allowed to infuse the Turkish-Ottoman synthesis into the region, that the educational institutions affiliated with various formations based in Turkey go beyond the control of Turkish foreign policy, and even reach a greater effectiveness than Turkish official policies. Basic philosophical approach; It should be "what is harmful for Turkey is also harmful for Turkistan".

The Turkestan Dilemma of the Recent Turkish Foreign Policy

Creating a European Union-style "Turkish Union" that will bring Turkistan and Turkey together was considered as a part of Özal's economy-oriented vision, but it has not been possible for various reasons to come to life until today. In this regard, Turkey has not been able to lead serious studies and projects. However, the successful completion of the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan Pipeline, which aims to connect countries through economic cooperation in the field of energy, paved the way for those considering similar initiatives. It has also been very beneficial that TRT Türk channel has been transformed into "the common television of the Turkish world" in order to mutually share our cultural richness, as TRT Avaz. TURKSOY connections and communication channels are also very important. In this way, events and festivals were organized in various fields among Turkic Speaking Countries, and programs and projects that reflect and develop our common Turkish culture and art and historical heritage were carried out.

After September 11, the US anti-terrorist war in Afghanistan reshaped the geostrategy of Eurasia, including Turkestan. At the same time, Putin's Russia; It has made a comeback as an influential and effective player in the global power struggle, although not as in the Cold War years. The Russian factor played a restrictive role in the "independent mobility" of Turkestan and Turkic Republics and affected their relations with Turkey. In addition, the increasing energy and industry relations between the Russian Federation and Turkey, the increase in mutual travel in the context of tourism, the developing-changing balances within the framework of the Eastern Mediterranean, Syria and Libya, and the internal and external security-oriented strategic relations (including the defense industry) before and after 15 July. has also made it necessary for Turkey to go more controlled in the fields of cooperation with Turkistan.

The "strategic cooperation" between the USA and Turkey, especially in the context of the Caucasus and Turkestan in the 1990s, did not produce the expected results for Turkey. In fact, in most cases, it has had a limiting effect in terms of both Turkey's relations with the countries of the region and the success of its own foreign policy initiatives. Being an ally of the USA in the Black Sea, Chechnya, Georgia and Ukraine has strained the bilateral relations between the Russian Federation and Turkey from time to time, and has caused some periods to deteriorate to a certain extent.

We can say that the same situation is also valid in Afghanistan-centered Turkestan policies. Although this situation is not a factor increasing tension between Turkey and the countries in the region, we have to say that Turkey's realization of new initiatives towards Turkestan, including the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, will lead to aftershocks that will reduce the power to follow a restrictive and active policy.

In Turkey's foreign policy towards Turkestan and the surrounding countries; Geographically-based geopolitics, common historical heritage-based geocultural and geoeconomic initiatives based on demographic and economic factors, especially a common language, continue with ups and downs. In a way, the success of geocultural and geoeconomic efforts, which remained in the background, has become dependent on geopolitical balances. The "fragile" structure of the Turkestan geography, which is determined without considering ethnic origins, is a triggering factor for ethnic and religious conflicts centered in the Fergana valley. This is due to a population that can be considered demographically weak.

When viewed from the scale of its structure, it prevents Turks from being the "dominant nation" in the wide geography of Turkestan. State-based unity is an obstacle to the construction of ethnic-based unity. Since every corrective attempt to make the borders of the country as they should be, will bring about new ruptures, it does not seem possible to reveal such a will in the near future. In terms of timing, the conditions have not yet been formed, and politically, opening such a philosophical view to discussion in today's world may disable the efforts to build Turkish unity.

To what extent can the regional-oriented global policies of the big states, namely the Russian Federation, China and the USA, which have a high capacity to influence the policies of the states of the Turkic world, allow the establishment of a Turkish Union? The answer to the question is uncertain. The geography of Turkestan, where global powers are the chessboard or where the big game takes place, and the Turkic states and societies living here have settled in a heartland that is too valuable to be left on their own. Turkey's foreign policy experience can help these young states better draw their own paths against global players.

We think that it invites important opportunities and risks in order to resolve the Afghanistan issue on the agenda and pave the road to Turkistan's future and ethnic unity with the right stones. As of August 31, 2021, we see that China is the strongest candidate to fill the void left by the USA, which has actually withdrawn from Afghanistan. A playing field is about to be opened for Turkey as well. The possibility of Turkey's cooperation with China on a bilateral dimension, in Afghanistan in particular, has increased. However, there may be a China-Turkey regional relationship with risks limiting both Turkestan and Turkey. Turkey, which has acted in partnership with the USA in the past, has “seemed” the damage of the so-called strategic partnership between the two countries. In order not to fall into the same situation, a Turkish foreign policy that does not serve Chinese interests and that can take direct contact with the Afghan government, if possible, multidimensional and deep should be followed. The success to be achieved in this sense; In the future, in possible new openings in the context of Turkestan, it can provide an opportunity for Turkey to act as a "protector" against China when necessary, and thus to take on a unique role that suits its own rights and interests.

Moreover, such a national stance can save Turkey from falling into the backdrop of China. It can prevent facing a situation that triggers the separation from the Uyghur Turks and enable Turkish foreign policy to focus more actively on Turkestan issues.

Turkey; Until now, in the East Turkestan issue, in order not to put itself in a difficult situation against China, it has kept away from displaying an approach that seems openly on the side of the Uyghur Turks. From the perspective of the Uyghur Turks, this "distant" policy of Turkey is regrettable. However, the policy of the Western Bloc led by the USA and the UK to oppress China in terms of human rights violations in the context of "East Turkestan"; Considered together with the containment policy of China, it is on the fault lines that also engulf Turkey. Even keeping the geography of Turkestan and the Turkic world away from global geopolitical conflicts goes beyond Turkish foreign policy.

In this respect, how much weight can a Turkey that does not/cannot stand by the peoples of Turkestan, regardless of the reason, in the Turkish World and in the near future in Afghanistan, and therefore in the Western world?

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