Turkey Program Coordinator Merve Tahiroğlu featured in the Associated Press In a June 13 article by Suzan Fraser for the Associated Press, “Erdogan and Biden meet at a tense moment for Turkish-US ties,” Turkey Program Coordinator Merve Tahiroğlu discussed the upcoming Monday meeting between President Biden and Turkish president Erdoğan at the NATO summit. “The most important thing for the Turkish leader at this time is to give a veneer of positive relations with the U.S. in terms of Turkey’s image,” said Merve Tahiroglu, Turkey program coordinator at the Project on Middle East Democracy. “He seems to understand that to get any kind of international investment to Turkey, he will need to project an image of positive relations with the U.S.” Read the full piece here. Photo Credit: Presidency of the Republic of Turkey Turkey Program Coordinator Merve Tahiroğlu featured in Ahval’s Hot Pursuit Podcast In a June 12, 2021 episode of Ahval’s Hot Pursuit podcast entitled, “‘Erdoğan, and not Biden, has high expectations from the crucial meeting’ – Merve Tahiroğlu,” Turkey Program Coordinator Merve Tahiroğlu discussed Turkey president Erdoğan’s position and prospects going into his meeting with President Biden at the NATO summit. Ankara really wants an image of positive U.S-Turkish relations, Tahiroğlu said, adding that the Turkish government “says that it has come to some sort of resolution in one of the major bilateral issues”. Turkey could find solutions for the S-400 crisis, where Turkey’s purchase of the Russian weapons systems led to its removal from NATO’s fifth-generation fighter jet programme and brought on U.S. sanctions, or the eastern Mediterranean crisis, where Turkey stands antagonistic against almost all its maritime neighbours, but without real democracy the new leaf in U.S.-Turkey relations is not coming, according to Tahiroğlu. “The more authoritarian Turkey becomes and the more it strays away from democratic values, it is only going to continue to play a spoiler role in multilateral institutions that are aimed at safeguarding democratic principles around the world,” she warned. Watch the full episode here, listen to the audio here, or read the article covering it here. Photo Credit: Ahval’s Hot Pursuit podcast Turkey Program Coordinator Merve Tahiroğlu writes commentary for Foreign Policy Turkey Program Coordinator Merve Tahiroğlu co-wrote a commentary, “In Meeting With Erdogan, Biden Holds the Power,” with former U.S. ambassador to Turkey Eric Edelman, that appeared in Foreign Policy on Tuesday. In their analysis, Tahiroğlu and Edelman discussed the tension-filled context of the upcoming conversation between the two presidents and urged Biden to press Erdoğan on three human rights issues in Turkey—namely, the unjust detentions of U.S. consular employees; the continued imprisonment of prominent civil society leader Osman Kavala; and the repression targeting the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP), Turkey’s largest Kurdish opposition party. Already, Biden’s frostiness has helped create leverage over Erdogan, who appears to be seeking a fresh start with the U.S. leader in Brussels. Biden must now make clear to Erdogan that an authoritarian Turkey is a threat not just to core U.S. values but also to U.S. security. More than paying lip service to democracy and the rule of law, Biden should use this meeting to press Erdogan on some specific human rights concerns that speak to Turkey’s democratic malaise and increasing disdain for civilized international behavior. […] Although Erdogan, his top officials, and their media handmaidens continue to use the United States as a punching bag to shore up votes, the Turkish leader also appears to understand a positive relationship with the United States is crucial for keeping the Turkish economy afloat. When Biden meets with Erdogan next week, he should make it clear that maintaining a working relationship with Washington requires respecting human rights and the rule of law. Ending the unjust imprisonment of U.S. employees, Kavala, and Kurdish politicians would be a good place to start. Read the full piece here. Photo Credit: Presidency of the Republic of Turkey Advocacy Director Seth Binder featured in The World In a June 8 interview with Rupa Shenoy for The World, “Activists look to Congress after Biden requests military aid for Egypt without human rights conditions,” Advocacy Director Seth Binder discussed the Biden Administration’s failure to address human rights in Egypt, highlighting their request for $1.3 billion in military assistance to Egypt in the FY22 Budget. Groups, including Amnesty International, had urged the administration to use the aid to encourage Cairo to address abuses. But instead, the proposed defense budget released late last month makes the same request for Egypt that’s been made since 1987. “To me, this is policy on autopilot, on cruise control,” said Seth Binder, director of advocacy at the Project on Middle East Democracy. […] The Biden administration has already indicated it will take a nuanced approach to its relationship. But in February, it approved a $197 million sale of missiles to the country, to the disappointment of human rights activists. “That was an opportunity for the US government to say, ‘No, no, no, we are making a change. We’re not just going to continue business as usual and move forward on an arms sale. We’re going to need to see legitimate progress on human rights reforms,’” Binder said. “And they didn’t do that.” […] Advocates pushing for a harsher stance toward Egypt now have their hopes centered on the US Congress, where the budget will go next for review. And Congress has already shown a willingness to act. Last year, it made a portion of aid to Egypt conditional to the release of political prisoners. But Blinken has the power to waive that requirement in the interest of national security, and he has until the end of September to do so. Binder hopes Congress takes that power away: “I’d like to see them remove the national security waiver entirely to send the strong message that Congress does care about human rights in Egypt, and is unwilling to sit back and wait anymore.” Read and listen to the full piece here. on Facebook ﻋﺒﺪ اﻟﻔﺘﺎح اﻟﺴﻴﺴPhoto Credit: AbdelFattah Elsisi – Advocacy Director Seth Binder featured in Middle East Eye In a June 4 article by Ali Harb for Middle East Eye, “How Israel’s latest offensive on Gaza shifted Biden’s tone on Egypt,” Advocacy Director Seth Binder discussed the Biden Administration’s shift in position on Egypt, the proposed budget, and the importance of recentering human rights in US- Egypt relations. As president, Biden has pledged to pursue a human rights-centred foreign policy. “It’s hard to reconcile how you can have human rights be at the centre of the relationship when you’re at the same time asking for more than $1bn in military aid, and you don’t want human rights conditions placed on it,” said Seth Binder, advocacy officer for the Project on Middle East Democracy (Pomed). […] Binder said the Biden administration has shifted its tone towards Egypt since the Gaza crisis. “There has been a demonstrated change in the rhetoric… It does seem to send a clear signal that these other issues are taking precedent, and human rights aren’t quite as central as human rights advocates would like,” Binder told MEE. Read the full piece here. on Facebook ﻋﺒﺪ اﻟﻔﺘﺎح اﻟﺴﻴﺴPhoto Credit: AbdelFattah Elsisi – Advocacy Director Seth Binder featured in Al Jazeera In a May 29 article by Joseph Stepansky for Al Jazeera, “US faces ‘difficult questions’ on Egypt ties after Gaza ceasefire,” Advocacy Director Seth Binder discussed the Biden Administration’s response to Egyptian president el-Sisi’s roll in the recent Israel-Hamas ceasefire. Seth Binder, the advocacy officer at the Project on Middle East Democracy (POMED), said the Biden administration’s expression of gratitude “misread” the situation and sent the wrong message to Cairo. “The Egyptians are doing this out of their own interest,” he told Al Jazeera. “We don’t need to bend over backwards to try to congratulate them on doing what’s in their interests. “We can still work with them on brokering a ceasefire, and at the same time pressure them and continue to centre human rights in the relationship.” Read the full piece here. Photo Credit: Joe Biden on Facebook Turkey Program Coordinator Merve Tahiroğlu featured on Al Jazeera’s “The Stream” In a May 19 episode of Al Jazeera’s “The Stream,” “Is Clubhouse a free speech haven?,” Turkey Program Coordinator Merve Tahiroğlu discussed the evolution of Clubhouse from a safe space for Turkish grassroots organization into another government-policed social media platform. “For many weeks it functioned as a relatively safe space where they could reach a broad audience. But as soon as the government discovered the app, of course, it also began to monitor and police those discussion rooms, and flooded the app with its own supporters to try to dominate the conversation. People still use Clubhouse, but as with other social media platforms, it’s no longer really a safe space for free speech.” Watch the full video here. Photo Credit: Al Jazeera | The Stream Tom Lantos Commission Briefing – “Human Rights and U.S. Policy in the MENA Region Ten Years After the Arab Spring” The Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission held a briefing April 29th, 2021, on the state of human rights in the Middle East and North Africa ten years after the Arab Spring and implications for U.S. foreign policy. A simple but desperate act of protest in Tunisia in December 2010, the self-immolation of a frustrated street vendor, sparked a series of pro-democracy uprisings in largely Muslim countries throughout the MENA region that became known as the Arab Spring.