The Mediterranean, home to countless religions, civilizations, empires, the homeland of humanity, which has encountered the worst of power struggles for millennia, is, once again, becoming the center of a large-scale power showdown.

As a matter of fact, this time around, the world’s superpowers, from the U.S. to China, from Russia to Europe, are gathering here.

Never before in any era of history, from Egypt to Rome, from the Crusaders to the Ottomans, has the Mediterranean fight seen such participation. The whole world is now taking position here.

The issue that appears today as the Libya issue, as the energy wars in the East Mediterranean, as the Syria war, as the Aegean islands dispute has been giving off tension signals for such a long time so greatly widespread that no country with a Mediterranean coast, no power with a stake in the global power domain will remain outside of this showdown.

The process we are witnessing through the division of both the energy resources discovered in the Mediterranean and Libya is soon to hit all Mediterranean coasts.

The Mediterranean-centered region, where humanity, every religion and civilization has claims of inheritance, is just warming up. Forces, plans, identities, future plots have only started to clash now.

After the Arab Spring, we witnessed numerous events such as a coup in Egypt, the Syrian war, protests in Lebanon, the civil war in Yemen, proxy wars via terrorist organizations, and the gathering of the world’s strongest fleets in the East Mediterranean.

From now onwards, we are going to see the “regionalization” of that which is “local.” Now, every attempt, every crisis, every negotiation, every measure, every fight is going to be “regional.”

The entire “central region” of the world, from North Africa to the Arabian Peninsula, from the Red Sea to the Persian Gulf, from the East Mediterranean to the Aegean, from Syria to Anatolia will take place in the Mediterranean showdown.

No country located between the Persian Gulf, the Red Sea and the Mediterranean can remain outside of this showdown. We might see these countries fall in the upcoming years.

Persian Gulf-based crises that broke out through crises centered around Arab-Iranian conflicts have been shaking the region for years. Western armies settled in these regions using terrorist organizations as an excuse, and eventually invaded Iraq.

In the aftermath, the world’s central fleets started to gather in the Red Sea, Djibouti, the Bab al Mandeb Strait that flows to the Suez Canal and the Indian Ocean. This time, Western armies concocted the “Somali Pirates” story as a means to settle into these areas.

Yet, terrorist organizations as well as the Somali pirates were all produced by them to use as war tools. They were blinding us all and we seemed to be willing.

The Syrian war was launched as part of the third stage. This time, Western fleets started to settle in the East Mediterranean. As a matter of fact, it was the Syrian war that made us realize the Mediterranean map operation.

They are building a line spanning the Iranian border and the Gulf of Alexandretta; they are settling there, building fronts, surrounding Turkey’s entire southern border, and erecting thick walls between Anatolia and the Arab region. Thus, they were closing off Turkey’s southern gates.

They were doing all this through terrorist organizations such as the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) and Daesh. This was a serious blinding operation. It was not about terrorism but rather a more expansive regional plan.

We realized what was happening and made three serious interventions in the region, and thus those “terror corridor maps” were postponed.

However, take note how the East Mediterranean crisis broke out right after the terror corridor. Syria’s and Lebanon’s west coasts, the east and south of Turkey and the Turkish Republic of North Cyprus (TRNC) suddenly became the global point of attention upon Israel’s discovery of natural gas reserves in the region, which are largely fortunes belonging to the Palestinian people.

Almost all central and regional countries started to take position, establish alliances and shape fronts in accordance with current developments. They started to ostracize Turkey here too. Like in Syria, Turkey’s south was being closed off once again. This time we were being surrounded from the seas as well.

Also, notice how immediately after the military buildup in the East Mediterranean, the Aegean islands became a matter of debate. The U.S., Greece, along with certain regional and EU countries started to arm the islands, establish missile bases in the region and build U.S. military bases. From this perspective, it seems the matters of the Aegean region and islands will exacerbate.

The next step to follow will be the straits. After the Aegean, we are going to experience a very grave crisis of straits. Turkey needs to be prepared for this.

The fight that started in the East Mediterranean has reached the Aegean and the islands. Thus, it will expand to the straits and the Black Sea. Those following the expansion of the power struggle must have noticed this.

The issue of Canal Istanbul and objections to the project need to be discussed within this context. Those who stood up in opposition to the siege in northern Syria, those who objected when a defense line was established in Syria will oppose once again in the Aegean islands matter. They will also adopt strange attitudes when the straits are being discussed.

Is it not thought-provoking enough that these groups and those opposing Canal Istanbul are one and the same?

In fact, there is a crisis map from Libya to the Gulf of Alexandretta. For Turkey, building defense lines in Libya and Alexandretta are intertwined. If we do not do this today, it means we will not be able to do anything in the future in the Aegean, the islands or the straits.

Regardless of whatever we do, the Mediterranean is the 21st century’s biggest showdown area. There is a quest for a “map of powers” from energy to geopolitical plans. A serious Suez crisis is around the corner. This is no exaggeration. Some countries on the Red Sea coast, in the Persian Gulf may face open wars and invasions.

Hence, Turkey has no choice but to have a foothold everywhere, from the Gibraltar to Alexandretta, the Red Sea to the Persian Gulf. Otherwise, we will have presence nowhere in the Mediterranean.

No presence in Mediterranean means no presence in Anatolia. Our nation has always been one to resist for centuries

If we are not present in the Mediterranean, then we cannot be present in the Aegean and the straits. This means, in the next step, we will also no longer be present in Anatolia.

It would be good to remember the idea of a few years back which entailed deploying NATO forces, international forces to the East Mediterranean. There were even those who wanted international supervision in the Marmara Sea.

Ever since the Crusades, we have been defending the region, the Mediterranean. We were the only force resisting. Today, once again, we are the sole nation resisting in the whole region.