Gulf News, UAE
Oct 26 2009

Turkey’s strategic foreign policy shift
Ankara hopes to boost its stature by acting as a bridge between the
Middle East and Europe

By Mohammad Akef Jamal, Special to Gulf News
Published: 00:00 October 26, 2009

Image Credit: Illustration: Nino Jose Heredia/Gulf NewsTurkish foreign
policy took a new turn after the appointment of Ahmad Dawood Oglu as
Foreign Minister in May. Oglu, who was previously chief advisor to
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, has a vision to expand
Turkey’s role, achieving breakthroughs in the Middle East and Europe.

Historically, Turkey has had strong relations with countries in the
Middle East, as well as common cultural and ideological visions.
Turkey also has strong ties with Europe, built over the last century,
which could allow the country to serve as a bridge between the two
regions, geographically, economically and culturally.

No doubt Oglu, the author of the famous book Strategic Depth, has had
an important influence on restructuring Turkey’s foreign policy,
making it far more ambitious.

This change is somewhat surprising, given that the Justice and
Development Party has not just come into power in Turkey, nor has it
witnessed a change in its leadership. However, US President Barack
Obama’s change of agenda has shifted the balance of power in the
Middle East, especially in relation to the Palestinian-Israeli
conflict.

There are two major issues that trouble Turkey. One is the activities
of the Kurdistan Worker’s Party (PKK), a chronic internal problem that
also has some connections to neighbouring countries. The other is
obtaining membership of the European Union, which is a purely external
affair.

Beyond these issues, Turkey hopes to become a player in
European-Middle Eastern rapprochement. The new Turkish inclination is
evident in its stance on the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. Turkey has
condemned Israeli aggression and crimes against Gaza, while Erdogan
walked out of the Davos Forum after a shouting match with Israeli
President Shimon Peres.

Erdogan also gave a speech at the UN urging the international
community to pressurise Israel to come clean on its nuclear programme.
At the same time, he has taken a softer stance on Iran, while
emphasising the need to rid the Middle East of nuclear weapons.

Turkey also cancelled scheduled joint military manoeuvres with Israeli
forces as a result of the latter’s crimes in Gaza.

This change in Turkey’s stance towards Israel is in line with
international sentiment. Israel has been angered, but Turkey has
benefited, as many of its neighbours approve. These neighbours are
important to Turkey’s national security.

Internally, Ankara is keen on isolating the PKK, and closing the
routes used by the party’s fighters to move between Iraq, Syria and
Turkey. In this regard, the great improvement in relations with Syria
has been helpful. Things are also looking up with Iraq. In his last
visit to Baghdad, Erdogan signed numerous agreements with Iraqi Prime
Minister Nouri Al Maliki. This will improve Turkey’s security, as key
PKK bases are located in the northern part of Iraq.

In its efforts to join the European Union, Turkey has been less
successful. However, this has not diminished its determination. The
European countries have their apprehensions about Turkey, as a result
of its huge size and population. These two factors will overburden the
well-off countries in the union, which have suffered from the
membership of countries that are less advanced, such as Greece, Spain
and Portugal.

Turkey is also being pressurised by the EU to make peace with its past
by apologising to the Armenians for the massacres it is accused of
being responsible for in 1894 and 1896. Taking a step in this
direction, Turkey and Armenia signed a historic agreement to normalise
relations on October 10, ending a century-long dispute.

A stumbling block that remains, however, is Turkey’s culture, which is
different to that of the EU’s member countries. This may be an
undeclared factor for opposing Turkey’s membership.

Some may see Turkey’s major shift in foreign policy as a decision to
turn its back on the West and give up its ambition to be a part of the
EU, but this is not the Turkish government’s intention. In fact,
Turkey hopes to curry favour with the EU by showing that it has an
important role to play in the Middle East ‘ a region of great
strategic importance.

Dr Mohammad Akef Jamal is an Iraqi writer based in Dubai.