Devlet Bahçeli, head of the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) and ally to President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, has slammed the United States as the “architect of atrocity” after the U.S. inserted itself into Israel’s war by attacking Iran’s nuclear sites.
“The United States is the bully and architect of atrocity that tramples over global conscience, stokes calamity, silently watches genocide unfold and threatens the Muslim world with weapons every time,” Bahçeli said in a statement released on Monday.
He accused U.S. President Donald Trump, who campaigned with the promise of ending wars, of being “contradictory and politically inconsistent, as well as fraudulent and insincere.”
“It’s the American people who can make the fairest and righteous intervention against this unreliable, faulty political attitude,” Bahçeli said.
“Israeli Prime Minister's (Benjamin Netanyahu) statement that they launched an attack with the aim of 'ending Iran's nuclear appetite' is nothing more than the mental eclipse of this era's genocidal leader and the cunningness of producing a justification to defend the wrong while floundering in contradiction,” he added.
Iran’s neighbor, Türkiye, has condemned unprecedented U.S. strikes on Iranian soil, warning against the risk of escalating the conflict and destabilizing the entire Middle East. It also called on all parties involved to "act responsibly, mutually cease attacks immediately and avoid steps that could lead to further loss of life and destruction."
It said only diplomatic negotiations could resolve the dispute over Iran’s nuclear program and urged the international community to support efforts for a diplomatic solution.
Although it is not party to the dispute between Iran and world powers over Tehran’s nuclear program, nor to the Iranian-Israeli conflict that continues after U.S. strikes, Türkiye has a lot at stake as a regional power and a neighbor of Iran. Unlike its allies in the West, it has defended Iran’s right to self-defense and slammed Israel’s policy of expansionism that now has its sights on Iran.
Turkish leaders have repeatedly warned that Israel’s next target may be Türkiye if its regional aggression is not stopped. Indeed, Israel views Türkiye as an opponent and occasionally issues veiled threats to Turkish leadership for its unwavering support to Palestinians suffering under the Israeli attacks since 2023.
Türkiye also maintains close ties with its NATO ally, the United States.
Justice and Development Party (AK Party) spokesperson Ömer Çelik said in a social media post on Sunday that worst-case scenarios can be triggered if conflicts spread across the region. “The danger of expansion of conflicts in our region emerged after U.S. attacks on Iran’s nuclear facilities,” he warned.
