EX-US OFFICIAL HAILS TURKEY, ARMENIA FOR TALKS

Hurriyet
Feb 18 2010
Turkey

Both the Turkish and Armenian leadership deserve great credit for
taking enormous political and domestic risks, a former U.S.

congressman has said in reference to the recent normalization talks
between Yerevan and Ankara.

Former Rep. Robert Wexler, who served as chair of the U.S. Congress’
Caucus on U.S.-Turkish Relations, recently resigned from his
congressional seat to lead the Center for Middle East Peace, a think
tank. He spoke at the SETA Foundation as part of a Washington, D.C.,
event called "Model Partnership: Creative Approaches to U.S.-Turkey
Relations."

In his remarks, Wexler explained how little attention was being paid
to the American-Turkish relationship when he was first elected to
Congress in the late ’90s, then added that he defined the current
relationship between the two countries as good.

The better relationship between Turkey and the U.S. was obvious,
Wexler said, when he received "arguably the most positive briefing in
years" at the U.S. State Department before his last visit to Turkey
in January. "It was positive because American-Turkish relations are
at a point of honesty – based on real, mutual interest and, at times,
differences in perspective," Wexler added.

Ratification process

Responding to a question about the ratification process of the
protocols signed between Turkey and Armenia, the former congressman
said he would like to advise Turkish leaders to stay one step, or
even a half step, ahead in this process. Such an attitude, he said,
would serve Turkey’s interests.

While accepting the importance of the U.S. administration’s reaction
in terms of making a difference on the ground, Wexler said he still
expects the State Department and the Pentagon to oppose the Armenian
"genocide resolution," which will be put to a vote in early March
in the House Foreign Relations Committee, as they did under past
administrations.

The U.S. administration’s attitude toward the resolution "remains to
be seen," he added.

Though some say Turkey’s foreign policy is shifting away from the West,
Wexler said that he finds little convincing evidence that Turkey is
moving to the East rather than staying anchored in the West.

Even though he disagrees with many foreign policies of the current
Turkish administration, Wexler added, he finds Turkey more democratic
and freer than it has been in decades, although he stressed that some
issues, such as the situation of the media, are cause for alarm.

Turkish-Israeli ties

Wexler also discussed the strained relationship between Turkey and
Israel and urged both governments to consider the importance of this
relationship. "The Israelis ought to give strong consideration to
a role Turkey can play on humanitarian efforts in Gaza. Though I
don’t agree with Prime Minister [Recep Tayyip] Erdogan’s narrative,
his views in respect to Hamas, and with respect to what occurred
in Gaza – I fundamentally disagree – but he is a passionate man on
humanitarian issues in Gaza," he said. "This could be a significant
element of bridging the divide between Turkey and Israel."

Responding to a question about the prospects of the Turkish mediation
role between Syria and Israel, Wexler stated that for Turkey to take
up that role again, the trust issues between Turkey and Israel need to
be resolved and the parties have to work hard to regain each other’s
confidence. Working toward this end, he added, is a two-way street.