Turkey’s growing alliance with Pakistan is raising global concern. With military aid, diplomatic support, and ideological collaboration, Erdogan’s Turkey is increasingly backing a terror-linked state, posing a significant threat to India and regional stability.
As geopolitical tensions rise in South Asia, Turkey under President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is increasingly aligning with Pakistan, a nation widely criticised for exporting terror and destabilising regional peace. Recent developments suggest that Ankara is not only diplomatically supporting Islamabad but is also deepening its strategic, military, and ideological partnership, posing a growing threat to India and potentially to global security.
On Monday, Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif concluded his visit to Turkey, the first leg of a four-nation tour that includes Iran, Azerbaijan, and Tajikistan. Before departing for Tehran, Sharif and Erdogan signed multiple agreements covering renewable energy, IT, infrastructure development, agriculture, and most notably, defence production. This marked the second meeting between the two leaders in just one month — their last interaction took place on April 22, the same day as the barbaric Pahalgam terror attack that killed 26 Indian civilians.
What has raised serious concerns in New Delhi and among global security analysts is the overt military collaboration between Turkey and Pakistan. Erdogan, who also visited Islamabad in February 2025, reportedly discussed increasing intelligence cooperation, educational solidarity, and technological support for counter-terror operations — ironic, given both countries’ documented roles in promoting extremist narratives and harbouring anti-India sentiments.
According to credible defence analysts, Turkey has become Pakistan’s second-largest arms supplier. Earlier this month, Turkish-manufactured Asisguard Songar drones were used by Pakistan to target Indian civilian and religious sites, only to be neutralised by India’s air defences. This isn’t an isolated incident. Turkish C-130 Hercules transport aircraft reportedly landed at Karachi Airport on April 27 and May 2, likely carrying arms shipments. Additionally, the Turkish warship TCG Buyukada docked at Karachi recently, further solidifying Turkey’s strategic footprint in Pakistan.
The military alliance is more than transactional. Erdogan’s aspirations to emerge as the leader of the Islamic world have driven Turkey to embrace Pakistan’s worldview, especially on contentious issues like Kashmir. Ankara has consistently backed Islamabad’s anti-India stances in international forums, including the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), and has amplified Pakistan’s narrative on issues such as the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), National Register of Citizens (NRC), and Article 370.
Erdogan’s broader ambition appears to be a recalibration of Turkey’s identity — from a secular republic to a dominant Islamic power. This ideological shift has seen an upsurge in state-funded institutions like Diyanet (DIB), which is expanding its influence globally. Islamist foundations, media outlets, and academic institutions affiliated with Erdogan’s government are accused of spreading radical narratives and targeting youth with propaganda that borders on jihadist rhetoric.
One key example is the International University of Sarajevo, run by Sevgi Kurtulmus — the wife of Turkish Parliament Speaker Numan Kurtulmus — which has become a platform for ideological export. Similarly, the Turkey Youth Foundation (TUGVA), chaired by Ibrahim Beşinci and funded by the state, plays an active role in Turkey’s foreign missions, propagating Erdogan’s vision of a pan-Islamic world order.
India’s earlier humanitarian assistance to Turkey during the 2023 earthquake under ‘Operation Dost’ is a stark contrast to Ankara’s continuing military and ideological support to Pakistan. Despite Indian goodwill, Turkey has chosen to stand by a nation internationally linked to terror financing and cross-border militancy.
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Experts warn that this unholy alliance could significantly destabilise the region. “Raising the Kashmir issue in collaboration with Pakistan’s ISI benefits a desperate Erdogan who wants to become the undisputed ‘Caliph’ of the Muslim Ummah,” said a senior official. He added that Turkey’s strategic interest might even extend to accessing nuclear technologies via Islamabad.
As Turkey and Pakistan deepen their dangerous partnership, their combined narrative warfare, arms exchange, and ideological propaganda are becoming serious threats to India and global security. A recalibration of international policy towards Erdogan’s Turkey may soon become unavoidable.
