New Delhi: About 2500 years ago, a Silk Road started, which connected the Mediterranean Sea to East Asia. During this period most of the traders were Muslims and moved towards the east. These traders not only brought trade goods with them, they also took their culture and beliefs with them to East Asia. Islam is believed to have been one of several religions that gradually began to spread to countries along the Silk Road through warfare, trade, and diplomatic exchanges during the 7th to 10th centuries.
Islam also arrived in China when the Tang and Song dynasties ruled. Islam first reached China in 616–181 AD through Sa’d ibn Abi Waqqas, Wahhab ibn Abu Qabacha and many other Muslim travelers. Many accounts mention that Wahab Abu Qabcha reached Canton by sea in 629 AD. Now China has such a large population of Muslims that it considers them a threat to itself. It is being said that for this reason China has thwarted Türkiye‘s desire to join the BRICS countries. Let’s understand this.
What is the Muslim population in China, strictness on Uighurs
Dr. Rajeev Ranjan Giri, Assistant Professor at Delhi University, says that there are about 25 million Muslims in China, which is less than 2 percent of the total population. Among these, Hui Muslims are in largest number. The largest number of Muslims live in the Xinjiang Autonomous Region in northwestern China. Among these, a large population is of Uyghur Muslims. The areas of Ningxia, Gansu and Qinghai also have Muslim population, but in smaller numbers. Of China’s 55 officially recognized minority peoples, 10 groups are predominantly Sunni Muslims. Being a communist country, China has a large population of people offering Namaz in public places, offices etc. Strict action is taken against Uyghur Muslims.
Uighur Muslims consider themselves close to Türkiye
About 12 million Uyghur Muslims live in China’s Xinjiang province. They speak their own language, which is similar to Turkish. They consider themselves culturally and ethnically close to Central Asian countries. Uighurs make up less than half of Xinjiang’s population. Recent decades have seen a large-scale migration of Han people, the majority ethnic group, into Xinjiang, reportedly to weaken the minority population there. China has also been accused of targeting Muslim religious figures, banning religious practices in the region, and destroying mosques and tombs.
Where did the debate start, why is India being accused?
Actually, this debate started when German publisher Bilge had published the news that India had stopped Turkey from joining BRICS. The reality is that Türkiye is a member of NATO and has applied for BRICS membership. China also wants to include Pakistan. Pakistan and China also have a strategic partnership with military cooperation. Despite this, Pakistan is facing a terrible economic crisis.
Pakistan also banned from joining BRICS
Recently, in the concluding speech of the BRICS summit, PM Narendra Modi had said that all decisions should be taken unanimously and the founding members of BRICS should be respected. This comment was seen in connection with Pakistan not getting membership of BRICS. The news came that despite the wishes of Russia and China, India stopped Pakistan from joining BRICS. However, former High Commissioner of Pakistan to India, Abdul Basit said that Pakistan did not even get the status of partner country in BRICS. Pakistan did not do homework properly.
Criticism of strictness on Uyghur Muslims proved costly for Türkiye
According to Assistant Professor Dr. Rajeev Ranjan Giri, apart from India, China is also being named in stopping Turkey. Karim Haas, a Russian analyst, said that China is angry over Turkey’s stance on Uighur Muslims. Türkiye often criticizes China for atrocities against Uyghur Muslims, to which China has been objecting. It is said that Turkey has been supporting Pakistan regarding its Kashmir issue, due to which India also has objection to Turkey joining BRICS.
These 5 big reasons behind Turkey not getting BRICS membership
According to Assistant Professor Dr. Rajiv Ranjan Giri, there are 5 important reasons behind Turkey not getting membership of BRICS. The first is that Türkiye is a NATO member country. Secondly, there is no consensus among the member countries regarding Turkey. The third BRICS is currently trying to add four new members – Iran, UAE, Ethiopia and Egypt. He got full-time membership of BRICS this year. The fourth reason is that China remains troubled by Türkiye’s condemnation of Uighur Muslims. At the same time, the fifth reason is that China also has a different view on Türkiye’s economy. China feels that Türkiye will prove to be a burden for the BRICS Development Bank.
Armenia-Azerbaijan war is also an important reason
Both Türkiye and India are at two ends in the fight between Armenia and Azerbaijan. Where India is giving arms to Armenia. At the same time, Türkiye stands with oil producer Azerbaijan. It is believed that this could also be a reason for Türkiye’s path to BRICS.
Türkiye has also messed up with Russia
Türkiye is involved in sanctions against Russia along with the G-7 and the European Union. In such a situation, Türkiye’s trouble with Russia has increased. Its bilateral trade with Russia is not increasing. The bilateral trade between Türkiye and Russia was $68.70 billion in 2022, which will decrease to $55.4 billion in 2023. Turkey has banned the export of American military technology to Russia. The biggest thing is that Türkiye is giving military weapons to Ukraine, which Vladimir Putin is not liking at all.
Turkey did not get a place even in the European Union
Türkiye wanted to join the European Union but did not get a place. It is believed that Turkey did not get a place in the EU due to being a Muslim majority country. In such a situation, Türkiye has been struggling with its identity. On one side of Türkiye there is Europe and on the other side there is Asia. Turkish President Erdogan has also expressed this desire when he said that Turkey’s desire to join BRICS should not be seen as turning its back on the West.