Turkey, under the leadership of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, has been engaging in what some analysts have described as ‘hostage diplomacy’, especially in the context of NATO negotiations. This strategy mirrors practices dating back to the Middle Ages, where capturing and ransoming individuals was a common tactic on the battlefield.
According to Robert Ellis in an article titled ‘Turkey Holds NATO to Ransom’ published Wednesday in The National Interest, Turkey’s approach to foreign policy has increasingly involved leveraging detained individuals as bargaining chips. This tactic was notably observed in the case of American pastor Andrew Brunson, arrested in 2016 following a coup attempt in Turkey. President Erdoğan attempted to exchange Brunson for Fethullah Gülen, a Pennsylvania-based Turkish imam accused by Turkey of orchestrating the 15 July 2016 coup attempt.
Ellis’s analysis further highlighted Turkey’s role in the recent NATO membership applications of Finland and Sweden, which were initially blocked by Turkey and Hungary. Turkey’s objections were primarily based on claims that these countries were harbouring supporters of groups like the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) and the Gülen movement, which Turkey labels as terrorist organisations.
Ellis goes on to describe the broader implications of such tactics. He notes, “In the modern era, the use of detained individuals as pawns in international diplomacy is not uncommon”. This observation is supported by examples from around the globe, where nations have engaged in similar strategies to assert their political and diplomatic agendas.
The article also scrutinises the impact of these strategies on Turkey’s international relations. “Erdogan’s gambit with Brunson initially strained Turkey’s ties with the US, demonstrating the high-risk nature of such diplomatic manoeuvres,” Ellis said.
