Turkey using education in swaying Arab minds

Turkey has been using its soft power, along with its hard power, in implementing its expansionist plans.

This soft power ranges between public diplomacy and TV drama, things that create a cultural support base for Turkey. Nonetheless, education is the most important tool of this power.

Turkey's soft power is paying off. There is a new generation of "Arab Turks" in the Arab region, a bunch of diehard Turkey supporters in this region. These people prioritize Turkey over the interests of their own countries.

Political goals

Islamists rose to the top in Turkey, following the collapse of the Soviet Union. Unlike traditional Ottomans, the Islamists did not want to stop inside Turkey's borders, but had expansionist ambitions.

 They dreamed of founding a Turkish state with its regional influence, one reminiscent of the Ottoman caliphate. They used the downfall of the Soviet Union and the independence of Turkish-speaking countries in expanding their influence outside their country.

Turkey attracted the students of these countries and provided them with lavish educational and health programs.

This turned Turkey into a magnet for foreign students. It formed institutions whose aim is to bring in foreign students and teach them in Turkey.

Following the Arab Spring revolutions, Turkey started putting its eyes on Arab students as well.

Between 2002 and 2011, Turkey succeeded in improving its image among Arabs, depending on its soft power, according to a 2017 study by researcher Abdel Qadir Mohamed Ali.

He says in his study that Turkey works to attract students from neighboring countries with the aim of influencing these students and create the necessary support base for it in these countries.

Most of those who study in Turkey pursue education in politics and economics, Ali says. When they return to their countries, these students will be responsible for formulating their countries' political and economic policies, which will of course be aligned with Turkey, he adds.