Changing the status of Hagia Sophia in Istanbul and its transformation from a museum to a mosque is not a religious issue and does not concern relations between Christians and Muslims, but it will affect Turkey's relations with Greece, Europe and Russia, and President Tayyip Erdogan should think very seriously about whether to do this, a Greek expert, columnist, former head of the Athens News Agency AMNA Michalis Psilos thinks.
Turkish President Erdogan said that he was waiting for the decision of the State Council on the possibility of changing the status of the Hagia Sophia and turning it from the museum to the mosque, and would do so depending on it. The Supreme administrative court of Turkey - the State Council-on July 2 considered the issue of changing the status of the Hagia Sophia. The State Council believes that a presidential decree is sufficient to change the status of the cathedral. The State Council's decision is expected to be published within 15 days.
"I do not believe that this is a question of relations between Orthodox and Muslims. I believe that this is a political game of Erdogan. It tries to put obstacles in the relationship between Christians and Muslims. The question has no religious dimension. It has the dimension of a world heritage monument, which should remain so, " Psilos told RIA Novosti, commenting on the situation around Hagia Sophia.
In his opinion, this is an internal policy of Erdogan in order to get the Islamic-conservative society that votes for him.
Psilos is sure that turning the museum into the mosque will "definitely damage" relations between Greece and Turkey. "It will certainly cause harm. Such movements are made that, in fact, harm not only the interests of the country, but mainly negatively affect emotions and public opinion. I think that this change will lead to a more hostile, I would say, direction in Greek public opinion towards Turkey. Because Hagia Sophia is a world heritage site and should remain so. I don't know how politicians will manage the situation, but it will certainly affect public opinion very negatively," Psilos said.
He recalled that Hagia Sophia was included in the UNESCO world heritage list. "Hagia Sofia became a museum in 1935, on November 24, by the decision of the President of Turkey, Kemal Ataturk. In 1982, Turkey signed the UNESCO international convention on cultural heritage, which was ratified by the Parliament three years later and which stipulated that the entire historical district of Istanbul belongs to the UNESCO cultural heritage. Based on the data and the status of UNESCO, the status of the museum and this world heritage monument cannot be changed in any way, " Psilos said.
In his opinion, Erdogan's statements about plans to turn the museum into the mosque are related to the domestic political situation.
"Unfortunately, after many hesitations, and this is not the last one, Erdogan seems to be moving towards turning the museum into the mosque. It is possible that this may be declared on July 15, the fourth anniversary of the attempted coup, for two main reasons. First – he wants to satisfy his constituents. Erdogan sees that unfortunately for him, Turkish voters have become distant, and he has lost municipal elections in major cities. He sees from opinion polls that things are not going well, and, in fact, he gives his voters, who are mostly conservative people and deeply religious Islamists, a bone to show that he is finally turning Hagia Sophia into the mosque, and get their votes," the expert said.
Psilos is confident that this development will affect not only the relations between Greece and Turkey, but also Turkey's relations with Europe and Russia.
"I believe that Erdogan should think very seriously whether to take this step - which is unacceptable to me – because it will be difficult for him to avoid possible sanctions and possible difficult situations that both the European Union and Russia will probably require," Psilos said.
Hagia Sophia was founded by the Christian Emperor Justinian and opened on December 27, 537. The cathedral was the largest church in the Christian world for more than a thousand years. After the capture of Constantinople by the Ottomans and the fall of the Byzantine Empire in 1453, the cathedral was converted into the mosque, but since the mid-30s of the last century, the building by decree of the founder of the modern Turkish state Kemal Ataturk became the museum and was included in the UNESCO world heritage list.
Plans to change the status of the museum caused a reaction in many countries around the world.
The Kremlin said it considered the decision on the status of Hagia Sophia an internal matter for Turkey, but hoped that the Turkish authorities would take into account the significance of this shrine.
Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia made a special statement in which he called on the Turkish authorities to reserve the status of the museum for Hagia Sophia in Istanbul.
The State Duma adopted an appeal to the Grand National Assembly of Turkey in connection with the discussion of the issue of changing the status of the Hagia Sophia Museum in Istanbul, calling for taking all possible steps to prevent damage that can be caused by a hasty change of status.
GSV "Russia - Islamic World"
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