In a stunning about-face, Turkey President Recep Tayyip Erdogan accused the U.S. military industrial complex of providing aid to terrorist groups in Syria, with the most notorious among them being the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, or ISIS. As reported by Zero Hedge, Turkey has had a troubled relationship with its foreign partners. Last year, Turkey shot down a Russian fighter jet which the government claimed violated its airspace.

Now, Erdogan has effectively stood with Russia. In a speech delivered in Ankara earlier today, the president stated that U.S. coalition forces “give support to terrorist groups including Daesh, YPG, PYD. It’s very clear. We have confirmed evidence, with pictures, photos and videos.” Should this ISIS conspiracy be proven correct, this would engender a whole new — and frightening — perspective on the so-called “war on terror.”

While the world awaits the reveal of Erdogan’s evidence — if indeed there is any at all — the general public should no longer be surprised by any accusation of U.S. involvement in the ISIS conspiracy. Radical Islam, while inarguably a severe and fatal threat to freedom and rationality, cannot escape its utility as a political tool. By creating a boogeyman, the U.S. and western powers can exploit the ISIS conspiracy to further their own interests.

Case in point is Libya and the murderous overthrow of its leader/dictator Muammar Gaddafi. No one is going to argue that Gaddafi is a great guy. However, outside of the oil markets, Libya is far removed from American interests. And say what you want about Middle Eastern dictatorships — Gaddafi and even Iraq’s Saddam Hussein at least kept their respective nations and the region stable.

Now, as President-elect Donald Trump has repeatedly noted, the power vacuums caused by U.S. military intervention has led to highly-sophisticated terrorist networks. Thus, the war on terror is a geopolitical diversion — it was never meant to be won, nor would that be considered desirable for the military industrial complex. The ISIS conspiracy is literally providing a revenue stream for defense contractors, and they have zero incentive to give up this lucrative cash cow.

It’s an absolutely bloody shame that the war on terror has been reduced to yet another money-making operation. However, the facts are the facts, and Erdogan is merely the messenger at this point.