In the aftermath of Jamal Khashoggi’s brutal killing in a Saudi consulate, it looked like the United States might finally get serious about holding ally Saudi Arabia accountable. Public pressure mounted against the war in Yemen and a botched Saudi cover-up raised new questions about their accounts of deadly airstrikes against civilians.
But on Thursday, any shred of hope that the U.S. might actually stand up for human rights evaporated as the Trump administration reportedly explored ways to handover Turkish cleric Fethullah Gulen as a sort of bribe to push Turkey to lessen pressure on Saudi Arabia.
It’s like the U.S. isn’t even pretending to care about standing up for human rights anymore.
Instead, the administration is more than happy to consider a move that would keep up Trump’s cozy relationship with one authoritarian leader by handing over a dissident to another.
For a little background, Turkish President Recep Tayipp Erdogan has accused Gulen of being a terrorist and alleged his responsibility in instigating the failed 2016 coup. Those charges, like those leveled against U.S. pastor Andrew Brunson of aiding terrorism during the same coup, are widely considered to be bogus. Indeed, in 2016, after Turkey turned over its evidence, the FBI and the Justice Department did not find that Gulen was guilty and refused to extradite him.
Gulen, Erdogan’s chosen scapegoat, is based in the United States, where he has lived since the 1990s and reportedly holds a green card, making him a legal permanent resident. Erdogan, however, has repeatedly called for his extradition so that he can face charges and almost-certain conviction and execution in Turkey.
The directive to again explore ways to hand the Pennsylvania-based cleric back to Turkey from the White House, after having already concluded that he is innocent, leaves little question on where the U.S. stands when it comes to choosing to stand up for human rights or keeping murderous, authoritarian allies close. Considering tossing out a legal resident to smooth over relationships doesn’t appear too far for the Trump administration.
Not only does that hurt our standing with European and North American allies, but it also undermines a key U.S. claim as it pushes back against the aggression rising from authoritarian world powers.
In a world where countries once instinctively looked to Washington, the U.S. is no longer the only option as Russia and China gain regional dominance. So far, the U.S. has clung to its supposed values as offering a better alternative to China’s coercive infrastructure dollars or Russian missiles.
If Gulen is extradited, the U.S. will show that, on human rights, when push comes to shove, words are just words to the Trump administration. That makes the U.S. less of an alternative than just another option, and gives credibility to French President Emmanuel Macron’s listing of the United States as a threat alongside China and Russia.
That’s not a list we should want to be on. But Trump’s call to appease Saudi Arabia by handing over a scapegoat as a bribe makes our inclusion hard to argue with.
