The Megalomaniac Ideals of States and Nations
This article explores the concept of "Great Ideals" or megalomania among various states and ethnic groups, arguing that such aspirations are a threat to humanity and democracy.
- Dear Readers:
As we mark the first anniversary of the Israel-Hamas war, which began with Hamas's attack on October 7, 2023, the conflict in the region has taken on multifaceted dimensions. Simultaneously with the Israel-Hamas war, the Israel-Hezbollah, Israel-Lebanon, Israel-Iran, Israel-Syria, and Israel-Yemen (Houthi) wars continue at full speed.
Like you, I carefully watch the open forums on TV channels. These days, whichever channel I turn to, they present a map under the name "Arz-ı Mevud" (Promised Land). Moderators and participants line up in front of the "Greater Israel" map, explaining in a panic that this terrifying (!) plan, which includes southern Turkey, is almost coming to fruition. The image of Arz-ı Mevud on the armbands of Israeli soldiers causes a separate fear.
Israel's Great Ideal: Arz-ı Mevud (The Promised Land)
The Arz-ı Mevud map on the armbands of Israeli soldiers
First, I want to clarify the name "Arz-ı Mevud." This Arabic phrase means "Promised Land." This expression is found in the Torah. It encompasses the lands from the Nile River to the Euphrates River. Today, these lands include Israel, Palestine, Lebanon, Jordan, Syria, Iraq, and Turkey. The Torah states that these lands were promised to the people of Israel.
The "Genesis" part of the Torah says: "To your descendants I give this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the Euphrates."
When President Erdoğan declared, "Israel has its eyes on Turkish territory," the situation took on a more serious dimension.
The question is: Is Israel the only country in the world pursuing a "Megalomaniac Ideal," meaning "Greater Israel"?
Let's take a look at the "Megalomaniac, or GREAT IDEAL" of states, ethnic, and cultural communities around the world, starting with our closest neighbors:
THE IDEAL OF GREATER ARMENIA
The Ideal of Greater Armenia encompasses the following regions: present-day Armenia, a significant portion of Turkey's Eastern Anatolia and Black Sea regions, Karabakh, and Nakhchivan. Also, parts of Georgia and Iran.
The Ideal of Greater Armenia, also encompassing Eastern Anatolia and the Black Sea coast
THE IDEAL OF GREATER GREECE (MEGALI IDEA)
The Ideal of Greater Greece encompasses present-day Greece, as well as the Western region of Turkey, Istanbul, the Eastern Black Sea, Cyprus, and parts of the Balkans.
The Ideal of Greater Greece
THE IDEAL OF GREATER KURDISTAN
The Ideal of Greater Kurdistan encompasses the following regions: Eastern and Southeastern Anatolia, Northern Iraq, northern and eastern Syria (known today as "Rojava"), and western Iran. Additionally, Central Anatolia, Red Kurdistan (Lachin region), and Khorasan are also seen as parts of the Ideal of Greater Kurdistan.
The Ideal of Greater Kurdistan
THE IDEAL OF GREATER AZERBAIJAN
The Ideal of Greater Azerbaijan encompasses present-day Republic of Azerbaijan (Northern Azerbaijan), as well as Southern Azerbaijan with Tabriz as its capital in Iran, Armenia, parts of Georgia, and a corridor extending to Kirkuk.
The Ideal of Greater Azerbaijan
THE IDEAL OF GREATER TURAN (PAN-TURKISM)
The Ideal of Greater Turan encompasses all communities and countries in the Ural-Altaic language group: Turkey, North and South Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tatarstan, Bashkortostan.
The Ideal of Greater Turan
THE IDEAL OF GREATER IRAN
The Ideal of Greater Iran encompasses present-day Iran, as well as the entire South Caucasus, parts of Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and many states in Central Asia.
The Ideal of Greater Iran
THE IDEAL OF PAN-ARABISM
The Ideal of Pan-Arabism aims to unite all Arabic-speaking states and regions under one umbrella.
The Ideal of Pan-Arabism
THE IDEAL OF GREATER GEORGIA
The Ideal of Greater Georgia encompasses present-day Georgia, as well as Armenia, Azerbaijan, the North Caucasus, and the northeastern region of Turkey, including Abkhazia and South Ossetia.
The Ideal of Greater Georgia
THE IDEAL OF GREATER RUSSIA (NOVOROSSIYA)
The Ideal of Greater Russia encompasses the regions that once formed Tsarist Russia or the Soviet Union. This includes Ukraine, Belarus, the Baltic States (Lithuania-Estonia-Latvia), Georgia, and the Central Asian Republics. The annexation of Crimea in 2014 emerged as a continuation of this "Great Ideal."
THE IDEAL OF GREATER ALBANIA
The Ideal of Greater Albania encompasses present-day Albania, as well as Kosovo, North Macedonia, Montenegro, and the Epirus Region of Greece. Albanian irredentists strive to achieve this goal.
The Ideal of Greater Albania
THE IDEAL OF GREATER SERBIA
The Ideal of Greater Serbia encompasses present-day Serbia, as well as Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Croatia, and Kosovo.
The Ideal of Greater Serbia
THE IDEAL OF GREATER ROMANIA
The Ideal of Greater Romania encompasses present-day Romania, as well as Moldova and the Bukovina region in northern Ukraine and the Bessarabia region in the south.
The Ideal of Greater Romania
THE IDEAL OF GREATER HUNGARY
The Ideal of Greater Hungary encompasses present-day Hungary, as well as Slovakia, the Vojvodina region of Serbia, Croatia, and the Zakarpattia region of Ukraine.
The Ideal of Greater Hungary
THE IDEAL OF GREATER BULGARIA
The Ideal of Greater Bulgaria encompasses present-day Bulgaria, as well as North Macedonia, the Thracian and Macedonian regions of Greece, and Serbia.
The Ideal of Greater Bulgaria
THE IDEAL OF GREATER FINLAND
The Ideal of Greater Finland encompasses present-day Finland, as well as Karelia, Ingria, and other regions of Russia.
The Ideal of Greater Finland
THE IDEAL OF GREATER ITALY (ITALIA IRREDENTA)
The Ideal of Greater Italy encompasses present-day Italy, as well as southern Austria, the Istria and Dalmatian coasts of Croatia and Slovenia, and the city of Nice in France.
The Ideal of Greater Italy
THE IDEAL OF GREATER UKRAINE
The Ideal of Greater Ukraine encompasses present-day Ukraine, as well as Russia's Kuban region, Poland's Galicia region, Moldova's Transnistria region, Romania's Bukovina region, and Crimea.
The Ideal of Greater Ukraine
THE IDEAL OF GREATER POLAND
The Ideal of Greater Poland encompasses present-day Poland, as well as the Lviv region of present-day Ukraine, western Belarus, and the Vilnius region of Lithuania.
The Ideal of Greater Poland
THE IDEAL OF GREATER SYRIA
The Ideal of Greater Syria encompasses present-day Syria, as well as Lebanon, Jordan, Israel, Palestine, and Turkey's Hatay region.
The Ideal of Greater Syria
THE IDEAL OF GREATER CZECHOSLOVAKIA
The Ideal of Greater Czechoslovakia encompasses the present-day Czech and Slovak Republics, Poland's Zaolzie region, Ukraine's Carpathian Ruthenia region, and Austria's South Moravia region.
THE IDEAL OF GREATER MOROCCO
The Ideal of Greater Morocco encompasses present-day Morocco, as well as Western Sahara, Mauritania, and a part of Algeria.
The Ideal of Greater Morocco (The region within the red line)
THE IDEAL OF GREATER AFGHANISTAN (PASHTUNISTAN)
The Ideal of Greater Afghanistan encompasses present-day Afghanistan, as well as a large region inhabited by Pashtuns in Pakistan. This region falls within the Durand Line border drawn during Britain's colonial years.
The Ideal of Greater Afghanistan (the entire four-colored region)
THE IDEAL OF GREATER ETHIOPIA
The Ideal of Greater Ethiopia encompasses present-day Ethiopia, as well as Eritrea, Somalia's Ogaden region, and Djibouti.
The Ideal of Greater Ethiopia
THE IDEAL OF GREATER BELGIUM
The Ideal of Greater Belgium encompasses present-day Belgium, as well as Luxembourg, the Flanders region in France, the Netherlands, and the southern part of England.
The Ideal of Greater Belgium
THE IDEAL OF GREATER BASQUE COUNTRY (EUSKAL HERRIA)
The Ideal of Greater Basque Country aims for a united independent state for Basques living in France and Spain. This includes the current Basque and Navarre Autonomous Regions in Spain.
The Ideal of Greater Basque Country
THE IDEAL OF GREATER TAMIL (TAMIL EELAM)
The Ideal of Greater Tamil encompasses the Northern and Eastern parts of Sri Lanka and the Tamil Nadu region of India.
THE IDEAL OF GREATER SOMALIA
The Ideal of Greater Somalia encompasses present-day Somalia, as well as Ethiopia's Ogaden region, northern regions of Kenya, and Djibouti.
THE IDEAL OF GREATER TURKESTAN
The Ideal of Greater Turkestan encompasses Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, China's Uyghur Region, and parts of Russia, Iran, and Afghanistan.
The Ideal of Greater Turkestan
THE IDEAL OF GREATER INDONESIA (MELAYU RAYA)
The Ideal of Greater Indonesia aims to unite Malay-speaking peoples. Present-day Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei, and parts of Singapore are included in the scope of the Ideal of Greater Indonesia.
THE IDEAL OF GREATER MONGOLIA
The Ideal of Greater Mongolia encompasses present-day Mongolia, as well as a significant portion of Mongolia within the borders of the Chinese State today, and Siberia within the borders of the Russian State.
The Ideal of Greater Mongolia (the three-colored region)
THE IDEAL OF GREATER GERMANY (GROSSDEUTSCHLAND)
The Ideal of Greater Germany aims to unite German-speaking regions under one state. It encompasses present-day Germany, as well as Austria, Czechoslovakia's Sudetenland region, Poland, and the Alsace-Lorraine region in France.
The Ideal of Greater Germany
THE IDEAL OF GREATER JAPAN
The Ideal of Greater Japan encompasses present-day Japan, as well as the Kuril Islands under Russian control, eastern Siberia within Russian borders, central and southern China, the Senkaku/Diaoyu Islands, the entire Korean peninsula, and China's Manchuria region.
The Ideal of Greater Japan
THE IDEAL OF GREATER CHINA
The Ideal of Greater China encompasses present-day Republic of China, as well as Taiwan, Mongolia, South and North Korea, Hong Kong, Macau, northeastern India, and islands belonging to Japan in the East China Sea. It also claims rights over 90% of the sea area in the South China Sea extending to Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei, and Indonesia.
The Ideal of Greater China
THE IDEAL OF GREATER VIETNAM
The Ideal of Greater Vietnam encompasses present-day Vietnam, as well as Laos, Cambodia, and the South China region.
The Ideal of Greater Vietnam
THE IDEAL OF GREATER ZIMBABWE
The Ideal of Greater Zimbabwe, also known as Pan-Africanism, encompasses present-day Zimbabwe, as well as Mozambique, Malawi, and Zambia. It also includes some regions of the Republic of South Africa.
THE IDEAL OF GREATER BALTIC (BALTOSCANDIA)
The Ideal of Greater Baltic aims to establish a large structure encompassing Baltic countries such as Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, as well as Finland, Sweden, and Northern Poland.
THE IDEAL OF GREATER KOREA
The Ideal of Greater Korea encompasses the unification of present-day South and North Korea, as well as China's Manchuria and Yanbian regions, Taiwan, China's Liaodong Peninsula, southern Japan, and Tsushima Island.
The Ideal of Greater Korea
THE IDEAL OF GREATER CROATIA
The Ideal of Greater Croatia encompasses present-day Croatia, as well as parts of Bosnia-Herzegovina, Serbia's Vojvodina region, and Montenegro's Boka Kotorska region.
THE IDEAL OF PAN-SLAVISM
Pan-Slavism, a comprehensive movement like Pan-Turkism and Pan-Arabism, aims to unite all Slavic peoples under one roof. These countries include present-day Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Serbia, Croatia, Slovenia, Bosnia, Montenegro, North Macedonia, and Bulgaria.
The Ideal of Pan-Slavism
THE IDEAL OF GREATER MAPUCHE
The Ideal of Greater Mapuche aims to unite present-day Chile and Argentina.
THE IDEAL OF GREATER MACEDONIA
The Ideal of Greater Macedonia encompasses North Macedonia, the Macedonian region in northern Greece, Bulgaria's Pirin Macedonia region, and the western region of Albania.
The Ideal of Greater Macedonia
THE IDEAL OF GREATER MEXICO
The Ideal of Greater Mexico encompasses present-day Mexico, as well as the US states of California, Nevada, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, Texas, and Wyoming.
The Ideal of Greater Mexico
CONCLUSION
Dear readers, the list above can be extended further. As you can see, every state, every nation, and every ethnic group has a "GREAT IDEAL" target defined according to itself. This situation is not unique to the State of Israel. I have not included religious factors such as Sunni Islam, Shia Islam, Catholicism, Orthodoxy, Buddhism, and Hinduism in the list above. When these are also taken into account, every nation, every ethnic group, and every religious identity has a claim on every inch of the world.
Let's imagine a world where every state, ethnic group, and nation begins a struggle to realize its GREAT IDEAL. In this scenario, humanity would devour itself. GREAT IDEAL targets actually emerge as the greatest enemy of human existence and democracy.
I fail to understand why Israel's GREAT IDEAL, called "ARZ-I MEVUD," causes such fear and panic in the press and media. Moreover, it can drive national leaders into such a panic that it forces the Grand National Assembly to hold closed sessions. A painful situation!
Every neighbor surrounding us has a GREAT IDEAL target. Let's not forget that there are also those in Turkey who pursue a GREAT IDEAL.
Without giving importance to the fallacies of GREAT IDEALS, which are the greatest enemy of human prosperity and democratic coexistence, it is necessary to remove obstacles in front of ethnic and religious identities within the country and to strongly instill a sense of tolerance and co-existence in our society. Democracy is the greatest weapon to eliminate all kinds of dangers. Our goal should be democratic Turkey and democracy.
