On Thursday, Dec. 21, the U.N. General Assembly rejected U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital in a 128-9 vote. A few days before that vote, 14 of the 15 members of the U.N. Security Council (UNSC) rejected the same decision, leaving the U.S. alone.

Of course, before everything else, we would like the results of this vote to bring a period of peace to Palestine. Refraining from taking the issue, as a matter of pride and trying to benefit from the largely shared wisdom around the world would be the best course of action. In this regard, threatening statements first by Nikki Haley, the U.S. ambassador to the U.N., and then directly by Trump were quite irritating and disturbing.

It is obvious why. The U.S. is the mightiest nation on earth. With a giant economy and military, the U.S. sends ripples around the world when it takes a stance on an issue. In addition, when Europe succumbed to the Nazis in World War II, the U.S. intervened in the war and changed its course. Afterward, as Europe was bowed under the shame of fascism and suffering from a lack of resources necessary to be able to stand on its feet again, the U.S. took on this job as well with troops and dollars. Actually, the bipolar world of the Cold War was also a byproduct of the devastation of World War II. Stalin had always been afraid of a NATO invasion and the U.S. of a Red Army invasion. Later, that scare apparently evolved into a profitable status quo. The concept of global hegemony had thus spread worldwide.

Repeating the mistakes

It appears now that humanity failed to learn the necessary lessons after the age of colonialism turned into mutual butchery during the two world wars. In fact, Western democracy claimed it had learned these lessons. But that is not true. Even a look at the Israeli-Palestinian conflict exposes this illusion. In my opinion, if these lessons had really been learned, the U.S. would not have made the latest Jerusalem decision. Again, the idea that a more just world is possible would not have been brought into so much doubt, and the era of hot wars, proxy wars and terrorism would not have begun so easily. I see that the belief in an unavoidable slide into global disaster has become quite strong today. Generally speaking, everyone is pessimistic.

The recent U.N. resolution on Jerusalem, however, can dispel that pessimism and break the mold for a better future, of course, only if we own that decision.

Ankara's role

We need to stop here and say some words about Turkey. Probably everyone would agree that President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan turned Trump's Jerusalem decision into a global issue.

First, the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) convened for an extraordinary summit in Istanbul. In addition to declaring east Jerusalem the capital of Palestine, the organization also called for the recognition of Palestine, while urging the U.S. to withdraw from the peace process. It was just stating the obvious. It would be impossible to act as a mediator while being so biased toward Israel and putting the peace process in jeopardy.

Similarly, leaders of the EU member states took a stance in line with that of the OIC. Meanwhile, Ankara was in contact with world leaders on the issue. And the two U.N. votes followed. In all of these, Ankara's pioneering role and Erdoğan's strong and resolute stance stood out.

Turkey is definitely an important country. It can speak with both the West and the Middle East at the same time, it is held in esteem in both worlds despite various campaigns and is a strong nation that has never been colonized and has no colonialist past.

Hence, Turkey's stance will always be taken into consideration. Erdoğan's "one minute" incident in 2009 and his mantra that "the world is bigger than five" as a critique of the hegemonic structure of the U.N. have had greater effects than the country's power allows, so much so that, despite U.S. arm-twisting and even its open threats to countries, an overwhelming majority of the world's states sided with Palestine.

Where does this power and influence come from? I think the world is currently facing a values crisis and a paradigm collapse. The truth is completely controlled by the masters of perception management. We have become used to watching genocide for years. The blinding ambition for profit has rendered everything permissible. We see that our basic ethical terms exist in name only, that they are not implemented and that the international system fails to serve its purpose. Utilitarianism and fear breed each other while compensatory processes cannot step in. Centrist politics has taken a major blow. Racism moves to the mainstream. It can be said that, as Polish philosopher Leszek Kolakowski remarked: "We have come to forget the act of asking questions itself, not the questions." Is it not that a world in which just eight individuals own as much wealth as the poorest half of the world's population would be another planet's hell?

Turkey, which refused to acquiesce to the status quo and exclaimed that the emperor has no clothes, although it is not as rich and big as others, has increasingly come to the fore in the world. It has 3.5 million refugees under the best conditions almost without any help from outside, regardless of their ethnic, religious or sectarian background. Today, Turkey is the largest contributor in terms of the ratio of humanitarian aid to its gross domestic product (GDP). And as in the Rohingya tragedy and Jerusalem issue, it has become the voice of the oppressed around the world by taking all risks.

Consequently, Turkey has gone through tough times after the "one minute" incident in 2009. According to Western media, Erdoğan, who had been praised to the skies until then, became a dictator and an autocrat in one day. A propaganda campaign was launched against Turkey, for which billions of dollars have been spent. Although Turkey under the leadership of Erdoğan has carried out the most effective struggle against the Daesh terrorist organization, it was accused of supporting that group. There were efforts to intervene in its domestic politics, as well. The PKK and the Gülenist Terror Group (FETÖ) were given support. And finally, a coup attempt launched on July 15, 2016, by FETÖ through its infiltrators within state agencies, in which 250 civilians were killed, was thwarted by a civilian resistance that taught the world a lesson. But suppression of that coup was almost met with serious reaction, and even disappointment. As a major NATO ally and an EU candidate country, Turkey was left alone.

After the Davos meeting in 2009

We can see clearly that this hostile attitude emerged after the "one minute" incident in 2009. Accordingly, Turkey's strong stance on the recent Jerusalem decision reveals the cause of this hostility.

Yes, Turkey's power comes from representing values that the world needs. Its influence does not derive from its powerful military or the size of its economy, but from the fact that what it says is morally right. Of course, countries like Micronesia, which supported the U.S. decision on Jerusalem, would not be expected to play such a role. With its history and geography, Turkey is not a country to be ignored. But it is not like the U.S., either.

Frankly, I do not believe at all that the U.S. can be great again through such moves as the Jerusalem decision. The West used to draw its strength and influence from its democracy. That representation of values is frequently called into question now. This trend cannot be reversed through the power of the dollar and Hollywood alone. Universal values must be definitely reflected in actions. One loses one's power when it is questioned. Anyone familiar with Foucault's writings in even a cursory way would know this.

The U.S. protecting its democracy and acting accordingly would benefit itself and the world. While China's possible course of action cannot be predicted, the U.S. turning in on itself and becoming angry and resentful could upset numerous balances – and the Jerusalem decision would be interpreted not as a defeat or weakness but a sign of self-confidence. The U.S. is a valuable country. But it had better increase its value through democracy.