America’s ideal Middle East ally
Turkey is a regional peacemaker and close to key combat zones. So when
Obama visits next month, will he make friends?
Stephen Kinzer
guardian.co.uk,
Thursday 12 March 2009
This has been a dizzying and enormously promising week for relations
between the United States and Turkey. The Obama administration has
recognised Turkey as a key ally, and apparently wants to make it a
strategic partner in the Middle East.
The sudden new momentum in this vital but troubled relationship became
clear during secretary of state Hillary Clinton’s recent visit to
Ankara. After meeting with Turkish leaders, Clinton spoke fulsomely of
the two countries’ shared commitment to "democracy, a secular
constitution, respect for religious freedom, belief in free markets and
a sense of global responsibility".
Then she made an announcement few had expected. President Obama, she
said, will visit Turkey soon, probably next month. It will be the first
Muslim country he has visited since taking office. Clinton said the
trip would be "a symbol of the value we place on our friendship with
Turkey". Later she told a television interviewer, "We support the
regional and global leadership role Turkey plays in major issues."
Barely 48 hours after after Clinton left Ankara, the president of
Turkey, Abdullah Gul, flew to Iran. It is likely that he was carrying a
message from the US to Iranian leaders. This is the first substantial
sign that the Obama administration may be making a serious effort to
reach out to Iran. No intermediary is as well placed to guide these
enemies away from confrontation as Turkey.
In recent years, Turkey has assumed the role of regional peacemaker,
serving as a go-between for countries that want better relations but
are not ready for direct talks, like Israel and Syria. The Obama
administration, desperate for new ideas as it faces intensifying crises
in the region, has decided to take advantage of Turkey’s unique
position. That means the US must decisively strengthen US-Turkish
relations. Obama’s forthcoming visit is aimed at doing just that.
Helping to jump-start negotiations with Iran is only part of what the
US is asking Turkey to do. The American withdrawal from Iraq is about
to begin, and Pentagon planners want to bring many troops out through
Turkey. This would probably require approval from the Turkish
Parliament.
The last time Turkey’s Parliament was asked to vote on supporting US
operations in Iraq was in 2003, when the US asked for permission to
carry out part of its invasion by sending troops through Turkey. The
Turks refused, setting off a cycle of recriminations.
Neither side has forgotten that episode, but the political landscape in
Washington has now changed dramatically. In 2003, Barack Obama had the
same view of the looming Iraq war that most Turks had: it’s a bad idea.
So while the Bush administration considered Turkey an unreliable ally,
the Obama team may see it as a country that, at least on matters
related to Iraq, has been wiser than the US.
This is not all the Americans want. They are also asking Turkey to
contribute more troops and aid to the US mission in Afghanistan, and to
allow the US to expand the ways it uses the sprawling military base at
Incirlik on Turkey’s Mediterranean coast. Now that the US is no longer
able to supply troops in Afghanistan and Iraq from the base it had been
using in Kyrgyzstan, the one at Incirlik has become more vital than
ever. It is officially a Turkish base at which US troops and aircraft
are based, so if the Americans want to use it in new ways, a friendly
relationship with Turkey would be essential.
Public opinion surveys suggest that pro-American feeling in Turkey
dropped precipitously during the Bush years. Still, Turkey is a
thriving (though not untroubled) democracy, and its people share
fundamental values with Americans. They are natural allies.
One potential problem in this relationship, though, is the annual
attempt by Armenian-Americans to have the US Congress declare that the
slaughter of Armenians in what is now Turkey 93 years ago constituted
genocide. President Obama pledged during his campaign to support such a
resolution. If it passes and Obama signs it, the ensuing surge of
anti-American feeling in Turkey would make it difficult for Turkish
leaders to cooperate with the US on more substantial matters. Obama
will have to find a way out of this trap. A breakthrough in relations
between Turkey and Armenia in the coming weeks, which seems at least
possible, may give him a way to do so.
The Turkish foreign minister, Ali Babacan, said the new warmth in
Turkish-American relations marked the dawn of a "new era", and asserted
that Turkey is "ready to cooperate" with the US. "The main message of
Clinton’s visit," he said, "was that there would be close consultations
on all issues from now on".
That would mark a sharp break with the past. Turkey knows the Middle
East well, is respected by almost every government and faction in the
region and can give the US much good advice. President Obama should go
there next month ready to hear it ` and act upon it.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
