ANKARA MAKES CAUCASUS AND CENTRAL ASIA A DIPLOMATIC PRIORITY – TURKISH PRESIDENT
Richard Weitz

EurasiaNet, NY
Jan 9 2008

Promoting peace and stability in the Caucasus and Central Asia is an
"important item" on Turkey’s foreign policy agenda, Turkish President
Abdullah Gul said in an address in Washington, DC. Gul’s visit to
the United States was devoted largely to heralding the return of a
solid US-Turkish strategic partnership.

Making his first trip to the United States as head of state, Gul, a
former foreign minister, portrayed Turkey as a diplomatic trailblazer
for the United States in several "hot spots." In a January 8 policy
address given at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars,
Gul emphasized that Turkey has maintained "good relations with most
of our neighbors."

Gul compared the South Caucasus to the Middle East in terms of its
"underlying instability." He maintained that Turkey "shares a similar
vision with the United States" for the region, with Ankara aiming to
help Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia make "their long walk towards a
sound democracy." He also said Turkey was interested in promoting the
"development of their fragile economies" and the "settlement of their
ethnic and territorial disputes." [For background see the Eurasia
Insight archive].

While acknowledging the lack of a "quick-fix solution" for regional
problems, Gul offered that "establishing sound regional cooperation
is a good point to start." He pointed to the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan
oil pipeline, the Baku-Tbilisi-Erzurum natural gas pipeline, and
the Baku-Tbilisi railway as vehicles for both the prosperity and
stabilization of the Caspian Basin.

While such initiatives have helped Turkey solidify ties with Azerbaijan
and Georgia, they have not helped Ankara normalize relations with
Armenia. [For background see the Eurasia Insight archive]. Gul did
not elaborate on any specific measures that could alleviate the
persisting enmity in Turkish-Armenian relations, or promote lasting
peace settlements in Nagorno-Karabkah, Abkhazia or South Ossetia.

Striving to further illustrate Turkey’s regional security role,
Gul cited Afghanistan, where "we have been projecting an active,
positive contribution since the September 11 terrorist attacks." These
contributions include twice commanding the International Security
Assistance Force, providing substantial civil and humanitarian
assistance, and helping revitalize Afghanistan’s economy through the
presence of large numbers of Turkish contractors.

Gul also mentioned that Turkey was using its "historically close
relations" with Islamabad to promote security cooperation between
Afghanistan and Pakistan. Last April, the Turkish government invited
Afghan President Hamid Karzai and his Pakistani counterpart, Pervez
Musharraf, to attend a summit in Ankara. At that meeting, they pledged
to deny sanctuary, training and financing to Islamic militants and
exchange intelligence on terrorist threats. [For background see the
Eurasia Insight archive].

Gul went on to described Iran as representing "a complex picture
in our region." While affirming that Turkey "actively supports a
diplomatic settlement of the conflict about Iran’s nuclear program,"
he cautioned that "we strongly oppose nuclear proliferation and
nuclear weapons in our region."

In his joint press conference at the White House earlier on January
8, US President George W. Bush hailed Turkey a strategic partner of
the United States, saying that Ankara and Washington in recent months
"have worked hard to make [relations] strong." He stated that the two
governments "deal with common problems," though the only issue Bush
specifically cited was the "continuing fight against a common enemy,
and that’s terrorists."

Bush reaffirmed his administration’s support for Turkey’s entry into
the European Union (EU), pointing out that "Turkey sets a fantastic
example for nations around the world to see where it’s possible
to have a democracy coexist with a great religion like Islam." In
addition, he argued that Turkey’s accession to the EU would be "in
the interest of peace" because Turkey could serve as "a constructive
bridge" that brings Europe and the Islamic world closer together.

In describing his private discussions with the Turkish president,
Bush revealed that the two touched on "the need for all of us to help
secure more energy supplies." The US president also informed Gul about
his upcoming Middle Eastern tour. It was the type of conversation,
Bush said, that occurs "when two friends are in the room together."

During a subsequent teleconference, a "senior administration official"
explained that the Turkish-American relationship qualified as a
"strategic partnership" due to "the fact that we deal with a whole
range of issues with Turkey, not just bilateral issues, but issues,
security issues around the world." The official indicated the Bush and
Gul exchanged ideas on an array of foreign-policy topics, including
Kosovo, Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Gul placed the bilateral relationship within a larger multinational
context: "We share a common vision and we work together, and the
relations between the two countries are such that they have an
impact not only on the two countries, but also on a regional and
global scale."

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress