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Turkey and US aim to boost ties
5.7.2006
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BBC, July 5, --
Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul is due to hold
talks with US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice
and National Security Adviser Stephen Hadley in
Washington.
"I hope this visit will further develop a
relationship that already has deep roots," Mr Gul
told reporters before boarding the plane in Ankara.
But relations between the two long-term allies were
seriously damaged by the war in Iraq, when the
Turkish parliament refused the US permission to
deploy troops here for the invasion.
There is still a good deal of making-up to do.
'Common purpose'
Turkey and America intend to sign a "Shared Vision"
document during Mr Gul's visit - a move some see as
a significant step in the right direction.
"This is a document that shows our two countries can
work together; that we have agreed a common
purpose," Mr Gul explained.
But like US officials - who stress that the document
is not a binding treaty - he was quick to caution
against great expectations.
"There will be no ceremony, no ritual," Mr Gul said.
Ties 'a la carte'
Nonetheless, analysts in Turkey are watching closely
to see what the document contains.
"Turkish-US relations have lacked a framework for a
long time. We have struggled to find common ground
since the dispute over the Iraq war," says Soli Ozel,
a political scientist at Istanbul's Bilgi
University.
Though non-binding, he believes the agreement could
represent meaningful progress. Others see it as a
goodwill gesture by both sides.
"I don't think both countries will eat from the same
fixed menu now, though," Mr Ozel adds. "Relations
are more likely to be a la carte."
Kurdish issue
Actual issues on the agenda for discussion in
Washington include the situation in Turkey's
neighbours Iran and Iraq - and most probably Cyprus.
Turkey has been frustrated by America's resistance
to calls to crack down on the outlawed Kurdistan
Workers' Party (PKK), in northern Iraq.
The PKK has been launching operations across the
border into Turkey from its mountain bases - but the
US security priorities remain elsewhere.
Whilst Turkey and the US are united in their desire
for a non-nuclear Iran, views on how best to achieve
that aim may differ.
And on Cyprus, Ankara is thought to be seeking US
support for a renewed peace effort on the divided
island, which hangs like a dark cloud over the
government's EU accession ambitions.
Seeking rapprochement
But there is a domestic agenda at play in this
visit, too.
"This government wants to create the image that the
US supports and accepts it," says Turkish academic
Hasan Koni.
"It is looking for a kind of rapprochement, to
counter pressure from big business and secular
groups at home," he says.
It is a reference to a campaign launched against the
current government by parts of Turkey's secular
establishment - fearful of a party rooted in
political Islam.
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan had requested an
invitation to Washington this summer himself. The
White House has not scheduled a visit so far, a move
some analysts see as a deliberate side-step.
BBC News
Southeastern Turkey:
North Kurdistan (
Kurdistan-Turkey) wikipedia
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