Hürriyet, Turkey
Jan 24 2009
Man who can bring Hamas to peace table
ISTANBUL – The stance taken by one of the governing party’s chief
foreign policy advisers, that Palestinian Hamas should be engaged
rather than treated as a pariah, has produced as many supporters as it
has detractors.
Seen as the main architect of the ruling Justice and Development
Party, or AKP’s, pro-active foreign policy abroad, Ahmet
DavutoÄ?lu is also a close associate and the top foreign policy
adviser to Prime Minister Recep Tayyip ErdoÄ?an.
Before he was appointed as ErdoÄ?an’s foreign policy adviser in
early 2003, DavutoÄ?lu was an academic who produced books
including "The Impact of Islamic and Western Weltanschauungs on
Political Theory." His 2001 volume, "Strategic Depth" was an ambitious
work that propagated a much more pro-active and creative foreign
policy for Turkey.
Since his appointment, DavutoÄ?lu has been a large influence on
the AKP. Shortly after the party came to power in 2002, Turkey’s
foreign policy of aloof detachment from the Middle East was replaced
by efforts to resolve the constant wrangling with neighbors and to
engage in regional issues.
Once he became ErdoÄ?an’s foreign policy maestro,
DavutoÄ?lu found a chance to realize some of his theories. As he
explained last Tuesday to a small group of Turkish journalists, Turkey
is a country that has to pursue "an integrated foreign policy" and
cannot have "a foreign policy of priorities."
This meant that Turkey would not have to choose between East and West,
the EU and the Middle East. All these different areas would instead be
covered in a simultaneous and even mutually enhancing fashion.
With this vision, the government changed Turkey’s conventional
positions on a variety of fronts: a more "pro-solution" attitude was
taken in Cyprus; relations with Greece, Bulgaria, Syria and Iran
improved; the habitual hostility toward Iraqi Kurds turned into
dialogue and cooperation. Even a Turkish-Armenian rapprochement
started with President Gül’s visit to Yerevan last
September. And, to the world’s surprise, Turkey became a negotiator
between Syria and Israel.
Engaging Hamas While European nations, and more importantly the United
States, refuse to talk to Hamas until it recognizes Israel, renounces
violence and accepts interim peace deals signed by the Palestine
Liberation Organization, the Turkish government wants the group to be
engaged and included in ongoing negotiations.
The Damascus-based leader of Hamas, Khaled Meshaal, appeared on Arab
satellite TV last Wednesday and declared their "victory." Yet he also
urged the West to reach out to his party. "I tell European nations,
now is the time to start talking to Hamas," he said. Hamas leaders
have announced they are willing to accept a "hudna" (truce) for a
decade or more, if Israel ends the occupation of Palestine by
retreating to its pre-1967 borders. Some hope that with some
encouragement, and some diplomatic "carrots," this "hudna" idea can be
the opening to breaking Hamas’ rejectionist vein and integrate it into
the peace process.
DavutoÄ?lu’s first move toward Hamas came right after Hamas’
election victory in Gaza in January 2006. Khaled Meshaal visited
Ankara to meet the then Foreign Minister Abdullah Gül. Israel
"condemned" the visit and Washington criticized it strongly. To make
matters worse, Hamas did not give any hint of being persuaded by
Turkey’s advice of moderation. It was an unsuccessful effort.
Yet DavutoÄ?lu took the stage once again when Israel started
bombing Gaza on Dec 27. Just a week before, he warned The Washington
Post’s David Ignatius on the "explosive" situation. When things really
exploded, he boarded a plane with his team, to dash from one Middle
Eastern capital to another, in order to secure a cease-fire.
When Israel declared its unilateral cease-fire on Jan. 17,
DavutoÄ?lu took great pains to persuade Hamas to do the same,
which it did the next day.
"Talking to Hamas is complicated," said DavutoÄ?lu. "You can’t
just come to an agreement with their leader and assume that is it. He
then needs to negotiate with all the internal factions in his
organization. Sometimes he can convince them, sometimes he can’t." He
also said the Islamic group was still more of a resistance
organization. "But they are starting to learn about diplomacy, the art
of achieving goals by making concessions."
"Right there, Turkey can play a crucial role here," said Bülent
Aras, a professor of international relations at Istanbul’s
IÅ?ık University. "In fact, now Turkey’s biggest possible
contribution to solving this conflict is its ability to talk to and be
trusted by Hamas."
Some Turkish foreign policy experts criticize DavutoÄ?lu’s
strategy. They argue that this actually pushes Turkey to appear on the
same team as Iran and Syria. Kadri Gürsel, the foreign news
editor of daily Milliyet, thinks that way and said DavutoÄ?lu’s
work only helps the "Middle Easternization" of Turkey. "It is not a
success to win Hamas’ trust," he said, "Hamas is willing to talk to
anyone just to gain legitimacy." DavutoÄ?lu is eager to help
solve the Arab-Israel conflict because this fits into his vision of a
more active Turkey and he also feels an emotional commitment at the
same time.