UNFORTUNATE RESULTS OF ERDOGAN’S VISIT TO USA
/PanARMENIAN.Net/
16.12.2009 GMT+04:00
Nabi Sensoy actually torpedoed the visit of Erdogan, who for some
reason hoped that all his statements in Ankara and Baku could work
with Obama too.
Turkish Prime Minister’s visit to the USA had rather a strange outcome
– Ambassador Nabi Sensoy offered his resignation, having represented
Turkey in Washington for three years only. The standard explanation
issued by the Turkish Foreign Ministry stating that the Ambassador
concluded his diplomatic mission, convinced few people only. The
Ambassador manifestly failed his primary duty of preventing not only
recognition, but also hearing of the Armenian Genocide resolution in
the U.S. Congress.
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Not to mention the fact that he wasn’t even able
to reduce with the help of pro-Turkish congressmen the aid provided
to Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh. And, finally, according to Ankara,
strengthening of the Armenian lobby at the expense of converting
Israeli lobbyists was on Sensoy’s conscience. It’s no secret that the
Israeli lobby, which used to actively support Turkey, has begun to
treat its ally rather coldly. It should be stressed that the Turkish
government itself is doing its best for the Israeli lobby to walk away
from Turkey, and great is Erdogan’s credit in this issue. After all,
it was him who developed a certain attitude toward the Jews in his
country, and the Ambassador has nothing to do here…
Sensoy actually torpedoed the visit of Erdogan, who for some reason
hoped that all his statements in Ankara and Baku could work with
Obama too. Thus, on a large scale the Ambassador is not to blame;
he just paid for his leadership. However, let us say that the price
he paid was not so high, taking into account that most likely Nabi
Sensoy will be sent somewhere else as an ambassador or will remain in
the Foreign Ministry personnel. Obviously he will not remain jobless.
But here we must recall some of the recent history of the US-Turkish
relations. For years, the American-Turkish Association (ATA) was led
by Ahmet Ertegun, co-founder and executive of the American record
label Atlantic Records, signing for the first time Ray Charles and
other jazz and R&B stars. Ertegun was a big name in the American
show business and as such, skillfully represented the interests of
Turkey at the Capitol and the White House.. After his death in 2006,
there started a period of depression, which is not yet outdone.
Though now the Turkish President travels through the Islamic world,
enters into contract for the sake of "Islamic solidarity", in fact
he follows the road to regional leadership. Ankara, in this case may
lose the U.S. and European confidence in Turkey, which is not in the
interests of either Turkey, or the United States and EU. Turkey cannot
become a leader in the Islamic world; there are enough candidates
even without her, such as Saudi Arabia, Iran, Pakistan, Indonesia…
Erdogan’s visit brought forth one more detail: actually becoming a
hostage to the interests of Azerbaijan in the hope that Baku would
transport hydrocarbons through Turkey and would sell the gas at a
very low price, Ankara led herself into a deadlock, from where she
can find a way out only by ratifying the Protocols. In any other case
she will have to suffer a defeat. The Justice and Development Party
(AKP) is ready to accept neither of the options. There is also the
scandalous case against "Ergenekon" on the assassination of Hrant
Dink, which has been suspended for some reason, and finally the
increasingly vague hopes of Turkey to enter EU. All these facts may
prove to be interrelated in the near future, and then the AKP will
finally lose its confidence vote. The consequences are apparent –
instability, new elections and a threat of military coup, to which
Turkey is no stranger.
All this story has only one negative point – the Armenian Genocide
issue has once again become a bargaining chip in US-Turkish relations,
and can again play a "fatal" role in any Armenian-Turkish negotiation,
not to mention the attempts to normalize relations.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
