ERDOGAN RESISTS US CALLS FOR IRAN SANCTIONS

The Associated Press
Monday, December 07, 2009

WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama has failed to persuade the prime
minister of Turkey of the need for sanctions against Iran.

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan (REH’-jehp TY’-ihp
UR’-doh-wahn) stressed at a press conference following his White House
meeting, that persuading Iran to give up its nuclear ambitions should
be left to diplomacy.

He said that he expressed Turkey’s willingness to mediate negotiations
between Iran and the West. But he also criticized current sanctions
against Iran as being ineffective because of loopholes for Western
goods to reach the Iranian market.

The Obama administration may seek new sanctions against Iran in the
United Nations Security Council, where Turkey currently votes as a
non-permanent member.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further
information. AP’s earlier story is below.

WASHINGTON (AP) – Seeking more help in the war in Afghanistan,
President Barack Obama praised Turkey for its "outstanding"
contributions there.

Speaking in the Oval Office after a private meeting with Turkish Prime
Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Obama said Turkey’s commitments have
helped bring stability to Afghanistan. Turkey took over the rotating
command of the NATO peacekeeping operation in Kabul last month and
doubled its number of troops to around 1,750. However, it has resisted
repeated U.S. requests to send its troops on combat operations.

Last week, Obama ordered 30,000 more U.S. troops be sent to
Afghanistan. The administration expects its allies to provide up to
10,000 reinforcements.

Obama also expressed his condolences for a recent terrorist attack
in Turkey, and said the two leaders reaffirmed their commitment to
defeat terrorism "regardless of where it occurs."

At least five Turkish soldiers were killed and several others wounded
in an ambush Monday in central Turkey. Authorities have not identified
the attackers but Kurdish and leftist militants are active in the area.

Monday’s meeting between the two leaders comes at a time of rising
Turkish influence in the Middle East and Central Europe. Before
leaving for Washington, Erdogan said Turkey has already contributed the
"necessarynumber" of troops in Afghanistan, and that Turkish military
and police will train their Afghan counterparts and press ahead with
health, education and infrastructure projects there.

Turkey’s participation in the Afghan mission carries enormous symbolic
importance because it is the only Muslim country working with U.S.

troops to beat back the resurgent Taliban and deny al-Qaida a
sanctuary.

More broadly, however, the United States would like Turkey to use its
sway as a regional power and Muslim majority ally to help solve some
of America’s trickiest foreign policy problems. But the two sides
disagree on many of the important issues.

Turkey has sought to become a mediator for the United States with Iran
and Arab countries, but it is unclear whether the Obama administration
is eager for Ankara to play that role. The two sides disagree on
sanctions against Iran and the Obama administration is uneasy about
recent Turkish disputes with Israel.

Greater friction is looming as the Obama administration intensifies
pressure on Iran to end its nuclear ambitions. A U.S. push for
sanctions at the U.N. Security Council, where Turkey currently sits
as a nonpermanent member, will force Ankara to choose between a NATO
ally and an important neighbor.

The two allies also will need to navigate the perennial issue of an
annual U.S. statement on the World War I-era massacre of up to 1.5.

million Armenians by Ottoman Turks. Breaking a campaign pledge,
Obama has refrained from referring to the killings as genocide,
a term widely viewed by genocide scholars as an accurate description.

The Obama administration has said it is wary that the sensitive issue
could upset talks that could lead to reconciliation and a reopening
of the border between Armenia and Turkey. It remains unclear how the
administration will handle the issue in the future, especially if
talks between Turkey and Armenia falter.

Tensions have eased over cooperation in Northern Iraq. Turkish
complaints about a lack of U.S. help in rooting out Kurdish militants
launching attacks on Turkey from Iraq loomed over Erdogan’s White
House visit with former President George W. Bush in 2007.

Since then Turkey has boosted trade in the region and improved ties
with members of the Kurdish minorities living on both sides of its
border with Iraq.