TURKEY’S MIDEAST ROLE BEHIND OBAMA VISIT
Islam Online
March 27 2009
BEIRUT — Turkey’s recognized role in the volatile Middle East
and mutual benefits are the main reason US President Barack Obama
chose Ankara to be the first Muslim country he visits as president,
analysts believe.
"Turkey plays a pivotal role in this region," Karim Makdisi, a
professor of Political Studies at the American University of Beirut,
told Reuters on Tuesday, March 24.
Obama is due in Ankara on April 5 at the start of a three-day visit
that reflects the country’s central place in his administration’s
diplomatic charm offensive towards the Muslim world.
Lawrence Korb, senior fellow at the Center for American Progress,
believes the visit would emphasize Obama’s message of reaching out
to Muslims.
The visit also comes as Obama champions a new approach toward old
Mideast foes such as Syria and Iran, and reviews his country’s
strategies in Iraq and Afghanistan.
As a non-Arab, Eurasian, Middle Eastern, Muslim country, Turkey
is well-positioned to serve as a key Obama ally on such issues,
experts believe.
"If you are going down this route of cooperation and dialogue,
countries that have open channels like Turkey are the ones you want
to talk to," maintains Makdisi.
"Who else can go to Moscow and Tbilisi, to Tehran and Tel Aviv?" agrees
Hugh Pope, an International Crisis Group analyst of Turkish policy.
"Who else can speak to Hamas in Damascus and also to the Egyptians
and have good relations with the Saudis on top of that?"
US-Turkish relations have seen strains since the 1999’s visit of
then US president Bush when he described the fate of Armenians in
the Ottoman Empire in 1915 as a genocide.
The unpopular Iraq war, widely opposed by Ankara, dealt another blow
to the already tense bilateral ties.
Interests
Experts say it serves the best interests of both Washington and Ankara
to improve ties.
"The United States is now cooperating with Turkey over Iraq and that
has had amazing consequences," notes Pope, the ICG analyst.
"Turkey will also want to hear more about the US withdrawal plans for
Iraq," says Steven Flanagan, senior vice president at the Center for
Strategic and International Studies in Washington.
Ankara has signaled readiness to help with the withdrawal of American
military equipment from Iraq.
A Turkish offer to play a major role in central Asia to help more on
Afghanistan has also been welcomed by Washington.
The Iran dossier is another thorny issue in which the Obama
administration would need Ankara, which might be ready to mediate
between Iran and the US.
With US-Iranian relations in flux after Obama’s offer of better ties,
Washington would value Turkey’s input on its neighbor, a Western
official in Ankara told Reuters.
"Before the president takes any steps on Iran, he wants to hear from
the Turks."
Ankara would also benefit from helping Washington.
"The US is working very closely in sharing intelligence against the
PKK and supports contacts between Turkey and the Kurdish regional
government," notes the Western official.