With the March 31 local elections approaching, President Erdogan, who has taken over the entire election campaign, seems determined to intensify the nationalist tone in the next period. He had done it during the double elections (presidential and parliamentary) of last May with success. It was no wonder then that the new achievements of the Turkish defense industry dominated his speech yesterday in the Black Sea city of Sakarya (Sangario). The maiden flight of the Turkish-made 5th generation KAAN warplane this week gave the Turkish president an opportunity to say a lot in this direction.

“Strong on earth, air, sea»

“Having the KAAN fighter jet and various missile systems is a matter of survival for us.” While focusing on the national enemy, he said that “our 40-year struggle against the PKK has taught us that the most important truth is that if you want peace and tranquility, you must be ready for war. As Turkey and the Turkish nation, if we want to live in peace and security in our land, we must have a strong army and a strong defense industry. Otherwise they won’t even let us breathe in this geography. We must be strong on land, air and sea, because no international law will protect us,” the Turkish president said to the crowd of supporters.

In the 2023 elections, the residents of Sakaria voted for him with a percentage of almost 70% and his party elected 5 of the total of 8 MPs in the constituency. Of course, in a tense international environment dominated by the issue of Gaza, a banner questioning the government’s policy that was briefly raised during the president’s speech, which read “Stop trade with Israel immediately”, was also noteworthy, a truth that everyone in the They know Turkey, but they are officially silent.

SIstanbul is a bet for the AKP

In the meantime, time is running out for the crucial local elections in Turkey and there is some concern in the government camp, especially for the big cities and whether one can be sure of the victory of the AKP in the metropolitan and regional municipalities. Everyone’s eyes, especially Erdogan’s, are on Istanbul. The opinion polls bring the two main candidates for the Metropolitan Municipality of Istanbul, Ekrem Imamoglu and Murat Kouroum within breathing distance. Analysts point out that a crucial factor will be the percentages received by the small parties, most of which, including the pro-Kurdish DEM, will field their own candidates).

Pro-government analysts say the hitherto non-confrontational and somewhat colorless Kurum, who does not wish to polarize, may have to change his strategy. So far Kurum, a former Minister of Environment and Urbanization, has avoided getting involved in controversies, choosing to focus on the projects that need to be done mainly to protect against the upcoming earthquake and traffic. This strategy, however, the same analysts say, has now reached a dead end and the time has come for Kurum to try a new narrative to break out of stagnation. It is therefore not improbable that in the next period we will see the two main candidates in Istanbul raise their voices and cross their swords on the many and urgent issues of the country’s largest city.