Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, in South Africa as a guest of the BRICS annual summit on Thursday, celebrated that his nation had tripled the number of its embassies in Africa under his rule.
Erdogan marked the opening of a new embassy building in South Africa on Thursday, which he credited his Islamist Justice and Development Party (AKP) for helping develop. He also took the opportunity of his speech to compare the America-based Islamic cleric Fethullah Gulen, which Erdogan blames for the 2016 failed coup against him, to the Islamic State. Gulen has denied any involvement in the coup and both the Obama and Trump administrations have refused to extradite him.
Erdogan was in South Africa for the annual BRICS summit, to which Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa are parties.
“I see this building as a sign of the value our country places on relations with the Republic of South Africa,” Erdogan said at the inauguration of a new Turkish Embassy building in South Africa’s capital Pretoria, according to Turkey’s state-run Andalou Agency. “Today we usher in this new building, giving us the opportunity to provide better service with physical conditions worthy of the Republic of Turkey.”
Turkey now has 41 embassy buildings on the African subcontinent.
Erodgan reportedly added that Turkey is “working to increase the number, capacity, and representation ability of our missions in African countries.”
During that same speech, Erdogan slammed Gulen’s organization, which Turkey refers to as the Fetullah Gulen Terrorist Organization (FETÖ), saying, “Daesh, FETÖ, PKK [the Kurdistan Workers’ Party], Boko Haram and al-Shabaab terrorist organizations are all common enemies of humanity. FETÖ is the same as Daesh.” Erdogan added, “Unfortunately, South Africa is one of the countries in which FETÖ is most active. Turkey won’t allow the Fetullah Terrorist Organization to turn South Africa into a base.”
In 2016, the Associated Press reported that several “Gulen-inspired” charter schools in South Africa were faced with a dilemma over Turkey’s global campaigns to “shut schools and other institutes linked to Gulen, who once enjoyed support from the Turkish government that now calls him a terrorist.”
Since Erdogan has become increasingly isolated in Europe, he appears to be looking to Africa as a way to increase trade for his nation.
In February, Erdogan launched an Africa tour, aimed at boosting Turkey’s economic output. He reportedly visited Algeria, Mauritania, Senegal, and Mali — all majority Muslim countries. His visit was the first visit by a Turkish president to Mauritania and Mali and he has reportedly “visited Africa more than any other world leader.”
On Thursday, following his meeting with President Vladimir Putin during the annual BRICS summit in South Africa, Erdogan said, “any kind of solidarity with Russia makes someone jealous.”
The men reportedly discussed the ongoing conflict in Syria.
“Developments in Syria, whether in Tal Rifaat or Manbij, are not going as desired. The only places [in Syria] that are going in the desired direction are Afrin, Jarablus, and al-Bab,” Erdoğan said on Wednesday.
Adelle Nazarian is a politics and national security reporter for Breitbart News. Follow her on Facebook and Twitter.
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