5815 - The Persian complex of Turkey
N. Lygeros
Translated from the Greek by Athena Kehagias
An unilateral examination of Turkey does not allow us to discover her Persian complex. Persia is intertemporally the empire of the center. And it has been in many occasions the center of gravity of other empires also, even that of Alexander the Great.
In the field of religion, Persia plays an important role and constitutes an role model for many Islamic nations. In the field of culture, Persia is one of the peaks, not only of the Islamic world but of humanity also. All these objective elements are too much for a neighbour. And as imitation is the first stage of admiration, no expert is surprised by the attempt of the Ottoman Empire to function, although in a different way of course, but yet on the same ground.
But in order to be adequate and to be able to actualize her dream, meaning, to surpass even the range of Persia, it is not enough to have the same claims, you ought to also have the same enemies, and of course to exterminate them more effectively. In the field of horror, Turkey managed to create the innovation of genocide. At this point Hellenism is involved. Marathon, Thermopylae and Salamis are stigmas not forgotten by mankind. The issue is not whether they were victories or defeats, but battles of civilazation and strategy.
And the existence of the Turkish occupation for 400 years, could not erase these memories and the sacrifices. For Turkey, Greece is insignificant and it is only a passage, an access to Europe. But her complex it still remains an annoying symbol.
In actual fact, it has transformed it to the following mental scheme. Greece is for Europe, what Thermopylae was for Athens. And to make it even more understandable to all, Greece is the Thermopylae of Europe. For this reason, our country is important, not for the deep state, but for continuation of the Ottoman Empire, namely, the neo ottoman order. For that to become understandable to all, is just a matter of time, but it is already a reality. The problem of the Persian complex is not its existence but its implications.