Turkey is Destroying NATO From Within

Last updated on October 1, 2025

When NATO was founded in 1949, members agreed to stand together against common threats. For decades, Turkey was one of those members and a vital one at that. Turkey was considered a bridge between Europe and the Middle East, and a frontline in the Cold War. Recently however, Ankara has steadily eroded NATO’s credibility and cohesion. The problem is not a matter of temporary tensions but a fundamental shift in Turkey’s orientation away from the West.

There are four ways Turkey has undermined NATO: hostile rhetoric toward the West, involvement in conflicts with allies, difficult behavior within the alliance, and growing cooperation with Russia. Together, these actions leave NATO weakened at a moment when unity is crucial in deterring Russian aggression.

The first issue is President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s hostility toward the West. Nearly half of Turks now identify the United States, their supposed ally, as the country’s greatest threat. It appears that Erdoğan no longer accepts an international order led by Washington. In fact, the deviation is so extreme that if Turkey applied for NATO membership today, it would not meet NATO’s standards. Without trust, cooperation inside the alliance becomes impossible.

Turkey’s behavior in regional conflicts has also worried many allies. In 2020, Ankara backed Azerbaijan in its war against Armenia over Nagorno-Karabakh, reportedly sending military aid and Syrian mercenaries. That same year, Turkey clashed with Greece over gas exploration near the island of Kastellorizo, pushing the two NATO members to the brink of confrontation. France faced similar tensions when Turkish vessels blocked a French warship from inspecting a suspected embargo violator in the Mediterranean.

Turkey also leverages NATO’s own consensus rules to get what it wants. Every major decision requires unanimous approval, and Ankara has frequently wielded its veto. In 2019, it threatened to block a defense plan for the Baltic states and Poland unless NATO labeled Kurdish militias as terrorists. For years, it blocked partnership programs with Austria after Vienna opposed Turkey’s EU membership bid. In 2021, Turkey even pushed NATO to soften its condemnation of Belarus after the regime forced down a passenger plane to arrest a journalist.

Turkey is also deepening its relationship with Russia. In 2017, Erdoğan signed a $2.5 billion deal with Vladimir Putin for the Russian-made S-400 missile defense system. Washington warned that the system’s radar could compromise NATO’s defenses, yet Turkey pressed forward and later announced plans to buy more. But cooperation has expanded way beyond weapons. Russia is building Turkey’s first nuclear power plant, and the two governments have discussed additional reactors and even joint projects in space exploration.

All of this has put the NATO alliance under strain and unfortunately, these tensions give Moscow opportunities to exploit divisions. We are seeing this in Ukraine and Former Pentagon official Brian Bergmann argued that cohesion is essential to deterring Russia and protecting Ukraine. When one member works against that cohesion, NATO’s credibility as a collective defense pact is threatened.

For now, Turkey shows no sign of changing course. Erdoğan continues to rail against the West, manipulate NATO procedures for political gain, and strengthen ties with Moscow. The danger is not that Turkey will exit NATO. It is that it will remain inside the alliance, hollowing it out from within.