Reps. Gus Bilirakis (R-Fla.) and Brad Schneider (D-Ill.), co-chairs of the Congressional Hellenic Israel Alliance, introduced legislation on Friday that calls on the U.S. State Department to reclassify Turkey under its Bureau of New Eastern Affairs, rather than its Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs.
The Turkey Diplomatic Realignment Act recognizes what the lawmakers say is Turkey’s “deepening ties with Russia, China and Iran, its support for Hamas and its aggression toward Greece and Cyprus,” which “are fundamentally at odds with Western security interests.”
The bill calls for Foggy Bottom to make the change within 90 days and to compile and file a five-year review of “the consequences of Turkey’s realignment away from Europe.”
“Turkey is at a crossroads, but Erdoğan has made his choice,” Schneider said of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. “His government harbors Hamas operatives, props up Putin’s war machine and obstructs NATO unity—while still demanding the privileges of a Western ally.”
“It’s time for American diplomacy to stop pretending that Turkey is still part of Europe,” the Jewish congressman added.
