He has been fond of writing poetry since he was a boy, but his early works were all old-style poems expressing personal emotions. After returning to China, he took up the pen as a weapon and launched a debate with conservative literati. At the same time, he published a large number of poems in newspapers and periodicals that were full of revolutionary passion in both form and content. His poems are high-pitched, exciting, and highly motivating. Even those who disagree with his political views have to admire his artistic genius.
His poems shook the poetry world like a powerful shock wave and also shocked the authorities. While the poetry world was cheering for another dazzling star to rise, the authorities included him on the list of dangerous persons. From the 1930s to the 1940s, going to jail became a common occurrence for him, which lasted for 17 years in total. In 1950, the Turkish Democratic Party government promulgated an amnesty law under pressure from domestic and foreign public opinion and the legal community. Hikmet was released as a result, but he was still subject to tracking, surveillance and persecution. Although he had retired and was nearly 50 years old, the authorities still required him to perform military service and attempted to kill him. With the help of relatives and friends, he fled to the Soviet Union via Romania and settled in Moscow in 1951. After the Turkish authorities learned of the news, they made a decision on July 25, 1951, to expel his Turkish citizenship on the grounds of "criminal crime." He actively participated in social activities in the Soviet Union and continued to engage in literary creation. He once won the Lenin International Peace Prize.
During his exile abroad, he traveled to many countries in the world, including Bulgaria, Poland, Hungary, France, Cuba and Egypt, where he held meetings, participated in anti-imperialist war activities, and held various television and radio show. While living abroad, he wrote many poems with the theme of maintaining peace, and more of his works expressed his love for his motherland and his longing for his hometown. Hikmet has been a director of the World Peace Council since 1951, and later served as a member of the Standing Committee and a member of the Presidium. In 1960, he served as chairman of the International Peace Prize Evaluation Committee of the World Peace Council. Hikmet knew many Chinese revolutionaries as early as when he was studying in the Soviet Union, including the internationally famous poet Xiao San. He sympathized with the revolutionary struggle of the Chinese people and mentioned China in many poems. For example, he wrote in "Angina Pectoris": "Half of my heart is here, and the other half, the other half is in China. Among the troops heading towards the Yellow River..." He wrote "My Heart Is Not There" in 1948 The poem "Here" writes: "The bright red blood, my blood, mixes and flows with the Yellow River. My heart beats in China, among the ranks of soldiers fighting for a just system."
From September to October 1952, he was invited to visit China and participate in the Asia and Pacific Regional Peace Conference, serving as vice chairman of the Conference Liaison Committee. During this period, he wrote 7 short poems praising the revolution and construction of New China.
On April 3, 1963, this poet, who was full of worries about his motherland, died in Moscow. Aged 62. His body was buried in the famous Novodevichy Cemetery in Moscow. The black granite tombstone was engraved with his figure marching against the wind.