On 15 June 1997, I was standing in the gardens of Çırağan Palace, one of Istanbul’s most iconic waterfront landmarks overlooking the Bosphorus. That day, then Prime Minister Necmettin Erbakan walked past with a large delegation as he headed towards a highly significant meeting taking place inside the palace.
A New Alliance Announced to the World
At the Ottoman era palace, now operating as a luxury hotel, the Developing Eight Organisation for Economic Cooperation, known as the D 8, was officially established.
The founding members were Türkiye, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Iran, Malaysia, Egypt, Nigeria, and Pakistan. The organisation later expanded when Azerbaijan was admitted through a vote held in Cairo in 2024.
Through the Istanbul Declaration, the eight countries pledged to unite their efforts in pursuit of economic development and closer cooperation. Following the announcement, the leaders gathered on a balcony overlooking the palace gardens to pose for a group photograph before the international media.
The meeting was regarded as one of the earliest serious attempts by Muslim countries to strengthen cooperation among themselves. It attracted considerable attention at the time, with widespread discussion surrounding the future of the newly established D 8 bloc.
I witnessed that meeting as a journalist and continued following the organisation’s development in the years that followed.
Just two days after the summit, Erbakan was forced to resign under pressure from the military.
With his departure, the organisation, whose vision had largely been shaped by Erbakan himself, gradually lost momentum and public attention. Over time, it evolved into a largely symbolic framework, holding annual meetings primarily to preserve its legacy through cultural and commemorative events.
One tradition has endured throughout the years. Participants continue gathering on the same balcony where the founding leaders stood in 1997 to take a commemorative photograph.
The Timing Was Never Right for the D 8
Twenty nine years later, I was invited to attend another anniversary event marking the organisation’s founding.
As I followed the proceedings, memories of that first historic gathering returned.
Speakers repeatedly stressed that the D 8 had originally been conceived as an Islamic counterpart to the Group of Seven established by the world’s leading industrial powers, representing the first significant step towards greater cooperation and unity among Muslim nations.
Those attending included former prime ministers, presidents, ministers, ambassadors, and senior political figures. Notably absent, however, were any current leaders from the founding member states.
Every speaker acknowledged Necmettin Erbakan’s role as the driving force behind the initiative.
The organisation reflected the strength of Erbakan’s long term vision.
Yet neither Türkiye’s domestic political environment nor the prevailing international climate at the time was capable of turning that vision into reality.
Western countries, together with other influential powers across Asia, had little interest in seeing such a bloc emerge as a potential alternative.
At the same time, the member states lacked the combined economic, political, and military capacity necessary to establish a meaningful counterweight to the existing global order.
Fresh Debate Over a New Political Alliance
For nearly three decades, Türkiye has hosted annual events commemorating the founding of the D 8.
This year’s gathering, however, generated an entirely different discussion after several conservative opposition leaders and Türkiye’s eleventh president, Abdullah Gül, attended the event.
As tradition dictated, participants gathered on the palace balcony for a group photograph.
Almost immediately, speculation emerged over whether Türkiye was witnessing the formation of a new political alliance aimed at challenging President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.
Every political party represented at the event traces its roots back to the National Vision movement established by Necmettin Erbakan.
The photograph included Felicity Party leader Mahmut Arıkan, New Welfare Party leader Fatih Erbakan, the son of Necmettin Erbakan, Future Party leader and former prime minister Ahmet Davutoğlu, Democracy and Progress Party leader and former deputy prime minister Ali Babacan, as well as former President Abdullah Gül, one of the founding figures of the Justice and Development Party.
The cordial atmosphere reflected in the photograph further fuelled speculation that a new alliance could be taking shape.
Can Such an Alliance Be Formed?
Every individual in the photograph began their political career within parties established by Erbakan or shaped by his political movement.
Yet during the most recent elections they were unable to unite behind a common strategy, build an alliance, or even agree on a single presidential candidate.
Despite sharing similar political ideas, common ideological roots, and long standing personal relationships, they failed to establish a unified political movement or coordinate their efforts.
Today, five active political parties in Türkiye have emerged from Erbakan’s National Vision movement.
The Justice and Development Party remains by far the largest among them and continues to govern the country.
Current political debate therefore centres on whether Erbakan’s political successors could eventually unite to create an alternative alliance against Erdoğan and the ruling party.
Although none of the participants offered any major political analysis supporting that possibility, the discussion itself attracted considerable public attention.
Abdullah Gül’s presence, in particular, gave additional weight to the speculation.
However, representatives from the participating parties whom I spoke to during the event dismissed the idea entirely.
As public discussion expanded, I spoke with them again.
They insisted that the reports and political commentary had been somewhat orchestrated and were being promoted by individuals who did not understand what had actually taken place.
In short, neither a presidential challenger to Erdoğan nor a new opposition alliance is likely to emerge from that gathering.
Their own political positions and long standing differences continue to make such cooperation highly unlikely.
Opposition to Erdoğan Has Failed to Gain Public Support
During the 2023 presidential election, the leaders now standing together in the same photograph adopted completely different positions.
Fatih Erbakan supported President Erdoğan.
Abdullah Gül announced that he would not stand as a candidate on behalf of any political party.
Meanwhile, Ali Babacan, Ahmet Davutoğlu, and Mahmut Arıkan backed Republican People’s Party leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, despite his longstanding political differences with their own movement.
Despite repeated attempts, these parties have failed to unite.
The Felicity Party, Future Party, and Democracy and Progress Party all contested parliamentary elections on Republican People’s Party lists.
That decision proved to be their greatest political mistake.
Supporters of the National Vision movement reacted strongly to the alliance with a party rooted in the political left.
Furthermore, alliances built primarily around opposition to Erdoğan have consistently failed to attract broad public support.
Subsequent local elections reinforced that trend.
Apart from the New Welfare Party, none of these parties succeeded in winning control of a municipality, while most remained around the one percent mark in the national vote.
In practical terms, they suffered a significant political defeat.
Despite those disappointing results, none of the party leaders accepted responsibility or resigned.
Instead, numerous senior political figures chose to leave the parties themselves.
Today, the combined electoral support of the four parties represented on the Çırağan Palace balcony remains below four percent.
No Joint Presidential Candidate Will Emerge From That Photograph
When I asked whether Abdullah Gül or Ali Babacan could unite these parties behind a common presidential campaign, many party officials immediately rejected the suggestion.
Given his age, few expect Abdullah Gül to embark on another political campaign.
As for Babacan, many believe he has already exhausted his political appeal among the wider public.
I also do not believe that these parties, all emerging from Erbakan’s National Vision movement, would once again support a presidential candidate viewed as politically opposed to Erbakan, as they did in previous elections.
They appear to have learned from that experience.
Instead, they would likely seek to nominate a conservative consensus candidate.
Even so, that task would be extremely difficult.
Türkiye’s political environment, together with the broader international landscape, has changed significantly.
Erdoğan’s foreign policy, national security strategy, and investment in Türkiye’s defence industry continue to receive strong public support amid ongoing geopolitical instability.
In today’s uncertain international climate, many Turks believe that no leader other than Erdoğan is capable of guiding the country through these challenges.
There is also a widespread expectation that improving economic conditions would further strengthen his electoral prospects.
For these reasons, claims that this anniversary event marked the birth of a new political alliance or the emergence of a common presidential candidate carry little weight when examined against the political realities outlined throughout this article.
