The United States tried for nearly half a century to get rid of legendary Cuban leader Fidel Castro and failed. The mighty U.S. establishment tried to stage coups in Cuba, attempted to assassinate Castro and even tried to invade the country with the Bay of Pigs fiasco.

The U.S. hated Castro, who set up a socialist state on the doorstep of its territory and did everything to end his rule. Castro, however, befriended his nation, created a relatively functioning system and coped with American intransigence. He became the darling of the Cuban masses, though he was very heavy-handed with dissidents, forcing his adversaries to flee the country to create a colony in Miami just across Cuba.

Castro was under the wing of the Soviet Union but managed to survive and strengthen his country after the collapse of the Soviet empire. After a fight with cancer he gradually handed power to his brother and eased out of the active political life. Gradually and with great reluctance the U.S. learned to live with Castro's Cuba. Castro died of natural causes last week. He was a friend to Turkey.

There are many similarities between the case of Castro and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. Erdoğan is not a cherished name in Washington, mainly because he has changed Turkey's policy of being a lapdog to the West and has led Turkey to follow its own independent policies that serve its own vital interests.

Erdoğan has introduced decency and justice to world politics, which is the last thing the West wants to see. He turned Turkey into the defender of the oppressed and underprivileged across the globe irrespective of their religion, language, color or race. Turkey has emerged as the last bastion of hope for many of the oppressed around the globe.

All these have made him popular among the oppressed and underprivileged but has also made him one of the leading targets of the West. Grudgingly Western leaders are forced to cooperate with Erdoğan because they have started to see that he has the support of his own people, like Castro, yet he is also an elected leader by popular vote unlike Castro.

Turks repeatedly question why the West did not support this nation on July 15 when the armed men who infiltrated the ranks of the Turkish military used tanks, armored vehicles, attack helicopters and F-16 fighters to stage a coup. The coup was halted when Turks took to the streets after a call by President Erdoğan and halted the armed attackers, paying a very heavy price: 248 dead and more than 2,000 wounded.

Like Castro, "they" tried to topple Erdoğan, assassinate him and get rid of him. But they failed thanks to the resilience of the Turkish people.

Turks still question why the Americans side with the Syrian Kurdish terrorists who cooperate with Turkey's Kurdish terrorists to carve out a new state in Turkish territory. Turks question why the Germans give arms, material and moral support to the PKK. Turks question how the PKK, which is a designated terrorist group in the U.S. and EU, gets a free ride across Europe. Turks question why the U.S. and many European countries are still providing sanctuary to Fetullah Gülen and the people who staged the coup attempt.

What is now clear is that despite their efforts to get rid of Erdoğan, the Turkish leader is here to stay, as long as he enjoys the love and affection of the Turkish people.