According to him, finding an alternative will be a tricky task for Washington, given the deployment of nuclear weapons in Incirlik and tensions between a number of countries.
The interview came after the Turkish government made a series of statements on the future of the Incirlik Airbase which has been used by the United States military.
Last week, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu mentioned Incirlik, saying that the Turks wondered why the United States and its allies were using the base if they did not provide air cover for Operation Euphrates Shield, a major Turkish-led offensive in northern Syria.
Presidential spokesman Ibrahim Kalin, for his part, reiterated that Turkey had the right to close the base, but added that this issue was not on the agenda.
Moreover, Turkish Defense Minister Fikri Isik underscored that the "fact that the international coalition is not providing support for the Turkish military in the Al-Bab offensive calls into question the current format of use of the base."
Speaking to Sputnik, Ali Er noted that there are military bases in the Middle East which can be used by Washington as an alternative to Incerlik, but the fact that this base is located on the territory of a NATO member state is of particular importance.
"I do not see any rationale in America creating an alternative to Incirlik on the territory of Iraqi Kurdistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, or Jordan. The strategic significance of Incirlik for the US is that the base is located on the territory of a NATO member state. This makes it possible to deploy some nuclear elements in Incirlik, if necessary, something that I think is the most important point pertaining to this base," he said.
"Hypothetically, a military base on the territory of another NATO member state could be an alternative to Incirlik," Ed said, referring to Greece, which he added would never have been used by the US as a platform for its operations in the Middle East so as not to provoke new tensions in Ankara-Athens relations.
The US using a possible alternative base in Romania is also unlikely because it will lead to a negative reaction from Russia, according to Er.
He recalled that the US continues to increase its military presence in Romania in order to approach the Russian borders closer, provide direct access to the Black Sea and exert permanent pressure on Turkey within NATO and beyond.
"I also believe that the future of Incirlik will depend on the outcome of the ongoing strategic negotiations on Cyprus. If the talks result in abolishing the role of Turkey as a guarantor country, it will mean that the US is searching for an alternative to Incirlk, Er said.
"At the same time, I think that the US is unlikely to start searching for such an alternative in the near future because it may further exacerbate what are already tense ties with Russia," he concluded.
"When a crisis arises between the US and Turkey, the issue of the Incirlik Base, which is strategic for the US, comes to mind first. The recent example is not the first and not the last," he said.
