ENVOY: NO STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN TURKEY, RUSSIA

Hurriyet
Jan 19 2010
Turkey

Turkey and Russia are getting closer and strengthening economic ties.

It is not a ‘strategic partnership’ but a result of ‘common interests,’
Ambassador Vladimir Ivanovskiy outlines.

Ambassador Vladimir Ivanovskiy

Although Turkey and Russia are fostering closer relations and economic
ties, the developments are not due to a "strategic partnership"
but "common interests," according to Russian Ambassador Vladimir
Ivanovskiy.

The term "strategic partnership" has been echoed in diplomatic circles,
especially after U.S. President Barack Obama’s use of the term during
a visit to Ankara last year. The United States has traditionally
considered Turkey a vital ally in maintaining its influence in a
region where rival Russia is strongest.

"It was part of the Cold War era," said Ivanovskiy, speaking about
the changing balance during a Tuesday interview with the Hurriyet
Daily News & Economic Review.

"Looking at the real interests that are common in the Black Sea,
Middle East and Central Asia, Turkey and Russia are becoming good
partners, especially in the field of energy," the ambassador said.

"There is no political motivation behind boosting energy cooperation
but bilateral economic interests," he added. "I don’t like the term
‘strategic partnership.’"

Russia feels no jealousy toward the U.S.-Turkey strategic partnership,
said Ivanovskiy, adding: "Moscow and Ankara have been tailoring their
own cooperation. I believe Russia and Turkey will be two key economic
actors on the global stage as strong partners."

Retired ambassador Murat Bilhan, the deputy head of the Turkish-Asian
Center for Strategic Studies, or TASAM, also believes cooperation
does not mean a strategic partnership.

"Though bilateral relations have been boosted, Russia has a fixed
policy when it comes to Yerevan, which is Moscow’s closest ally in
the southern Caucasus. It does not want to lose it and that’s what
lies behind the pro-Armenia remarks," Bilhan told the Daily News.

Returning from Moscow last week, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip
Erdogan claimed his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, had agreed
on the urgent need for a solution to the Nagorno-Karabakh dispute.

According to Erdogan, Armenia should withdraw from the seven occupied
Azerbaijani provinces in a show of sincerity.

Putin, however, had earlier said, "It is unwise from both a tactical
and a strategic point of view to package these problems together,"
directly contradicting Erdogan.

Many analysts find Erdogan too optimistic about any emerging strategic
partnership and believe existing frozen conflicts serve Russia’s
interests in the Caspian energy fields.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov also urged Turkey to expedite
the ratification of the normalization protocols during his visit
to Yerevan. "To try and artificially link those two issues is not
correct," he told reporters Jan. 14.

"We have been playing honestly since the beginning. What Lavrov said
in Yerevan is the same as what Putin and Medvedev told Erdogan in
Moscow," Ivanovskiy said.

Russia will not put pressure on Armenia to withdraw from the occupied
territories, the ambassador added. "As the Turkish side already
knows, we will not take part at the side of any party. We will not
put pressure on anybody in order to solve the problem," he said. "Such
pressure may result negatively."

According to the ambassador, French President Nicolas Sarkozy and Obama
have expressed similar views as well. The Minsk Group co-chaired by
Russia, the U.S. and France has, however, thus far failed to find a
solution to the Nagorno-Karabakh dispute.

Diplomatic sources said Moscow agrees on Ankara’s policy, but cannot
officially affirm it due to its position in the region. "Did you ever
think why the Minsk Group has recently intensified its efforts? No
disappointment exists on our side," a source told the Daily News.

Foreign ministers Ahmet Davutoglu and Lavrov held a phone conversation
Jan. 15.

"We have progressed considerably. A total solution to all frozen
conflicts in the southern Caucasus will be a relief for everyone.

Putting pressure on Turkey to ratify the normalization protocols
before a specific deadline will not pave the way for a solution,
but will bypass a permanent settlement," Davutoglu warned Lavrov,
according to a source close to the issue.

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Armenian President Serge
Sarkisyan will meet in Moscow next month as part of the Minsk peace
process.