NEW DELHI, Aug 1: Turkey has been hit hard for supporting Pakistan. Indian Tourists visiting in June this year dropped by 37%, a month that traditionally sees the highest flow of Indian tourists to Turkey.
This step of Indian tourists comes after Turkey openly supported Pakistan during “Operation Sindoor.” As per official tourism figures from Turkey, only 24,250 Indian tourists visited the country in June, down nearly 37 percent from the same month last year, when 38,307 Indian tourists had visited. In May, 31,659 Indian tourists went to Turkey, also down from 41,554 Indians who visited in May 2024.
During Operation Sindoor the Drones used by Pakistan for Striking the Indian Terror ties were Turkish. The debris recovered by India showed that these were SONGAR ASISGUARD drones of Turkish origin. This is the first nationally developed armed drone used by the Turkish armed forces.
The Prime Minister Narendra Modi told Parliament earlier this week that out of 193 nations, only three supported Pakistan, while the remaining supported India during Operation Sindoor.
Modi was referring to Turkey, China, and Azerbaijan—nations that have often stood by Islamabad on the international stage, including at the United Nations and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC). These three countries had issued statements in favour of Pakistan when Indian armed forces carried out precision strikes in Pakistan.
Turkey’s stance outraged the boycott, and prominent travel websites such as MakeMyTrip, EaseMyTrip and Cleartrip said they would not promote Turkey tour packages. The impact is slowly but surely beginning to show. While May and June are the peak months of tourism for Indians going on vacation. The 2025 figures are the worst for June, as the full boycott impact has become visible.
(Subham Singh)
