Turkish prosecutors on Thursday opened a criminal investigation into British economist Timothy Ash for allegedly insulting President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan after he referred to an age of “maybe sociopathic leaders” and then named Erdoğan along with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
“As has been reported in the press, our chief public prosecutor’s office has opened an ex officio investigation into T.A. for ‘insulting the president’ over words he uttered at a meeting,” the Bakırköy Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office in İstanbul said in a one-sentence notice.
The office did not explain why prosecutors in İstanbul opened the inquiry into remarks made in Bodrum, a resort town in the southwestern province of Muğla.
Ash was discussing how the interests of political leaders shape government policy in a recording from the finance meeting.
“It’s about not what is in the benefit of the state of the US. It’s what’s in the personal interest of Donald Trump. And I would say Putin in Russia,” Ash said.
“I mean, we’re in an era of maybe sociopathic leaders, I would say. And it’s, you know, what is in the interest of these individuals? These, you know, the Netanyahus, Erdoğan.”
“Oops, I didn’t say that. Take that back. Stop the video,” he continued. “It’s okay. It’ll be on the front page of Sabah tomorrow with a little picture of Timothy Garton Ash, this little guy with a ginger beard. ‘He said that.’”
Ash appeared to use the name of British historian Timothy Garton Ash while referring to himself during the joke. Sabah is a pro-government Turkish newspaper.
The recording does not contain a direct statement that Erdoğan is a sociopath. Ash used the phrase “maybe sociopathic leaders” before naming Netanyahu and Erdoğan, then withdrew the Erdoğan reference.
“A genuine slip of the tongue, which I retracted immediately, & absolutely no offence intended. Chatham House rules obviously don’t apply to Sabah,” Ash said on X after the investigation was announced.
“Erdogan has stood up valiantly for Gaza & Palestinians, as has Turkiye. No comparison to Netanyahu. Period.”
Ash is a senior emerging markets sovereign strategist at RBC BlueBay Asset Management and an associate fellow in the Russia and Eurasia program at Chatham House. He has covered Turkey for more than 25 years.
Article 299 of the Turkish Penal Code (TCK) carries a prison sentence of one to four years for insulting the president. The sentence may be increased by one-sixth if the alleged offense was committed in public.
The European Court of Human Rights ruled in 2021 that Turkey violated freedom of expression by convicting a man under Article 299 and found that presidents should not receive greater protection from criticism than other people under criminal law in the Vedat Şorli judgment.
The Council of Europe’s commissioner for human rights called on Turkey to repeal Article 299 in a 2026 memorandum, citing its effect on freedom of expression.
This article is republished from Turkish Minute.
