No-no… India did not stop the membership of BRICS… How did the fire-breathing Turkey become calm?

New Delhi : Turkey never misses any opportunity to fire against India. Turkiye speaking the language of Pakistan on Kashmir. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is known for his/her poisonous anti-India speeches. But it seems his/her tone has become a bit loose. Last month, Erdogan avoided mentioning Kashmir in his/her speech at the UN. Now his/her office has rejected the media report which claims that Turkey’s attempt to enter BRICS failed after India’s opposition. It was claimed in the media report that India does not want Turkey, a close friend of arch-rival Pakistan, to be included in the group of fast-growing economies. Turkey has completely rejected the reports in which it was said that India has not included BRICS. There was opposition to his/her joining the group. In fact, in the recently concluded BRICS conference in Kazan, Russia, it was decided to include Turkey as a partner country in this group. A day before this, a German tabloid had claimed in its report that India had opposed Turkey’s entry into BRICS. Ankara has rejected the report in an official statement.

The news came just before German Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s three-day visit to India, which began on October 25. Turkey is one of the 13 countries that were approved to join BRICS partner countries this year. Turkiye often speaks the language of Pakistan on Kashmir issue. But now it seems that there has been a change in this.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been continuously raising the issue of Kashmir in his/her speeches at the United Nations, but in this year’s speech he/she was seen with some change. While addressing the United Nations General Assembly in September, he/she avoided mentioning the Kashmir issue. While some saw it as Erdogan’s strategy to garner support ahead of the BRICS summit in Russia in late October, others said it was significant as it came in the midst of elections in Jammu and Kashmir.

At a UN meeting this year, Erdogan criticized the UN for inaction on Gaza and accused Israel of turning the Palestinian territory into the largest cemetery of children and women.

Apart from the BRICS summit, Turkiye is also trying to expand its investments in India and tap its markets. Erdogan last visited India in 2023 for the G20 summit and ended his/her visit on a positive note.

BRICS is a group of countries with the fastest growing economy in the world. It has members Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. The name of the group is BRICS, taking the first letter of the names of these countries.

India’s economic relations with Turkey have gained new momentum in recent years. Bilateral trade has increased significantly, crossing $13.80 billion in 2022-23. According to Central Bank of Türkiye data, Indian companies have invested about $126 million in Türkiye. On the other hand, according to India’s Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade, Türkiye’s investment in India is around $210.47 million.