Category: America

The Internationalist » Turkey at the Crossroads (Literally)

by Stewart M. Patrick

U.S. President Barack Obama (R) shakes hands with Turkey’s Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan after a bilateral meeting in Seoul March 25, 2012. (Larry Downing/Courtesy Reuters)

When it comes to “rising powers,” the BRIC countries—Brazil, Russia, India, and especially China—tend to get the most press. But there’s another emerging player that promises to shape world politics in the twenty-first century with its robust growth, political evolution, and strategic choices. It is Turkey, a country that straddles some of today’s most critical divides: between Europe and the Middle East, between the West and the developing world, between secular democracy and religious piety. Turkey’s evolving might, its geographic position, and model of moderate political Islam make it a natural candidate for “strategic partnership” with the United States. This is the conclusion of U.S. Turkey Relations, a just-released CFR task force report co-chaired by former secretary of state Madeleine K. Albright and former national security adviser Stephen J. Hadley—and directed by my able colleague, Steven A. Cook.

What makes Turkey so special? Real estate, for one thing. Turkey is both a physical and symbolic bridge between the West and the turbulent Arab and broader Muslim worlds. There is little that the United States can do to respond to the deepening crisis in Syria, for example, whether it is imposing sanctions or launching military intervention, without buy-in from Ankara. But Turkey’s significance to Washington is far greater than location. Politically, it offers reforming Arab states like Tunisia, Libya, and Egypt a compelling governance model, proving that a ruling Islamic party (in this case the Justice and Development Party or AKP) can preside over a vibrant democracy that brings sustained growth (including a red-hot 10 percent rise in GDP in 2010) to its people. Turkey shows Islamist reformers that there is indeed a middle ground between strongman rule and sharia law.

In their public comments accompanying the report’s release, the co-chairs were effusive about Turkey’s prospects, with Hadley calling it “one of the five or six most important countries in the world today.” A bit of hyperbole, perhaps, since Turkey currently ranks only seventeenth globally in GDP (PPP), fifteenth in military expenditure, and eighteenth in population. Still, it clearly belongs in the top ranks of emerging powers, as reflected in its G20 membership and its increasing determination to flex its diplomatic muscles—albeit not always successfully, as in the ill-considered 2010 effort with Brazil to head off UN Security Council sanctions on Iran.

Notwithstanding occasional bilateral frictions, including over Israeli conduct, Turkey’s emergence as a diplomatic player is something the United States should celebrate. As the CFR report makes clear, the two countries’ interests are broadly aligned on numerous regional and global issues, from promoting stability in the Middle East to ensuring reliable flows of energy, combating terrorism, curtailing WMD proliferation, expanding international trade and investment, and advancing global development. The challenge is to turn these shared interests into common strategies and coordinated policies, through a more structured, and regularized process of consultation modeled on the U.S.-China strategic and economic dialogue—one of the report’s most compelling (and easily accomplished) recommendations.

The CFR report does not sugarcoat Turkey’s internal challenges and political shortcomings. While celebrating the transformation wrought by the Erdogan government, the task force bemoans the AKP’s sometime authoritarian tendencies, including crackdowns on journalistic freedom and judicial independence. It also cautions that Turkey’s transformation is incomplete, particularly when it comes to the evolving, fraught relationship between the civilian government and the Turkish military. Finally, the report acknowledges that the unresolved position of Turkey’s Kurdish minority may limit its role as a model for multiethnic democracy in the Middle East. The task force recommends that the United States and other democracies deepen their diplomatic efforts to persuade Turkey to “write a constitution that will advance and deepen democracy” on each of these fronts.

Upgrading the U.S.-Turkey partnership is especially urgent when Europe is increasingly inward-looking and internally divided, with nations focused on their own ongoing macroeconomic and fiscal difficulties. The European crisis has put on indefinite hold the question of whether Turkey will ever be admitted to the EU, and, in turn, made many Turks question the advantages of EU membership. In the absence of progress on that front, a U.S.-Turkish strategic partnership offers a way to ensure that Turkey keeps one foot anchored in the West, even as it pursues a more ambitious diplomatic and trade agenda to its south and east. One priority for the United States, the task force suggests, is expanding modest trade between the two countries, by negotiating a bilateral Free Trade Agreement. Another step would be to upgrade its role in the NATO alliance in recognition of Turkey’s stalwart performance in Afghanistan (including commanding the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) on three separate occasions).

Integrating Turkey into U.S. diplomatic relations would be another forward-looking step by the Obama administration to adjust to the twenty-first century and its changing power dynamics. Having already paid more attention to Brazil and India, and shored up a constructive (though tense) relationship with China, a partnership with Turkey is a logical next step. The world is changing and the United States must adapt its diplomacy.

via The Internationalist » Turkey at the Crossroads (Literally).

May 12, 2012
IT’S 19 MAY…KNOW YOUR ENEMY!
One of the first things my classmates and I learned at the United States Military Academy at West Point over fifty years ago was taken from an ancient Chinese book called The Art of War by Sun Tzu. “If you know your enemy and know yourself,” he wrote, “you can win a hundred battles without a loss.” The next and equally important thing was “to treat your men as you would treat your sons.”

The incomparable Mustafa Kemal Ataturk knew this in all the dimensions and theaters of strategic thinking: military, political, and social. And he knew that winning the war of independence was only the beginning. Centuries of dictators and ignorance and backwardness had deeply clutching cultural roots, roots that strangled a peoples development. He knew that the dark-minded babblers of superstitious mumbo jumbo did not vanish with the birth of the new republic. And he knew that they and their offspring would long outlive him. He foresaw literally all the dangers for the young nation. He knew its enemies completely.

19 May 1919 was an ending and a beginning. It marks the first day of the ending of centuries of repression and dark-minded ignorance. It also marks the first day of the Turkish war of independence. Like a titan, the 38 year old Mustafa Kemal rose from the sea at Samsun and struck a mighty blow for freedom and national sovereignty. The day signifies the eventual nullification and rejection of hundreds of years of “sharia” governance. It is easy to understand why this holiday is unpopular with this present government that so fixedly stares backward at the “glories” of repressive Ottoman rule. Indeed a prime minister so in love with one book that he never mentions another, a head of government who espouses, caliph-like, that already impoverished families should have even more children (five is now the magic number). Surely this man who never smiles must despise this day, 19 May, a day that celebrates enlightenment, youthful energy, and the genius of a uniquely gifted man, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk.

Mustafa Kemal knew of men like this. That’s why 19 May celebrates the vitality of youth. It shouts out loud that we are the vigorous heirs of a democratic, secular republic, one founded on the enlightened principles of scientific reasoning, not on religious incantations and stale thought. We are a vital, young-minded, open-minded force, brimming with energy. Like him, a man who swam in the same sea with the people at Florya, rowed boats, swung on swings, danced skillfully, a man who rode horses incomparably. When have you seen a politician do any of these things? His so-called advisors put this Turkish prime minister on a horse once. The result? An unforgettably embarrassing, dusty hard landing. Such antics are a measure of how the nation has fallen through the years.

Everything has changed utterly. Now, everything has been revealed. Mustafa Kemal warned of it years ago. The corruptions he spoke about— and Turkish youth have memorized—have all come to pass. Turkish youth has always been abused, beaten, jailed, tortured, hung, regardless of the ruling party. The army has been an instrument of the west, a maker of coups on American demand, like the “our boys did it” of Evren’s tragic fiasco in 1980. The political powers have always collaborated with outsiders, again mostly America. And the Turkish people have always stood alone, awaiting the crumbs.

That’s why Mustafa Kemal left the protection of the nation not to the Turkish Army nor to the Turkish politicians but to the young nation’s youth, in his words, “the children of the Turkish future.” And that is why 19 May exists, the day he came from the sea to Samsun. He was 38 years old, already a military hero. He himself was the first child of the Turkish future. And thus began the long, brutal struggle for national independence. Ataturk later said that he had felt reborn on 19 May. It later became his official birthday, such was the measure of his devotion.

He knew that the new nation needed “an army of knowledge” more than an army. He knew that politicians could easily become “today’s men” betraying the public trust by pursuing power and wealth. That’s why he entrusted the new Turkish nation to people like him, young, vital, honest people uncontaminated by the old ways. He knew his friends too. Turkish youth, idealistic and open-minded, it does not run after benefits, he said. It seeks the good, the genuine, the true. He knew that the nation’s youth would be “tomorrow’s men” seeking the long-term mutual good over short-term convenience. Ataturk knew this and so much more. He had seen his young people die by the thousands for their country. He knew their courage, their collective strength of character, their devotion to their new country. And he knew that they and their children’s children would protect the great victory over the enemy of darkness, ignorance and submission. And he would protect his people, his youth, his sons and daughters, by giving to these same sons and daughters a profound responsibility: the guardianship of the democratic, secular Republic of Turkey. A grand, idealistic idea. Except the politicians and the military always intervened. They knew better, they said. And today we see what they knew.

19 May is a day that belongs to the youthful heirs of the secular revolution, not to the government. It is a celebration of their responsibility to protect the republic from all enemies, both foreign and domestic. It is a vitally important day. As Ataturk said at the Sivas Congress in September 1919: “Youth, all the hope and future of the fatherland depend on you, and the energy of the young generation. Our motto is one and unchangeable: Independence or Death!” 19 May is such a day, a day of remembrance and recommitment. It is a day for us all to be reborn.

And that is precisely why the government seeks to eliminate this vital day of celebration and reaffirmation. It has divided it (for now) into three separate celebrations hoping that such division will ultimately result in extermination. In January, it banned the nationwide use of stadiums for 19 May ceremonies claiming that it might be too cold for the children. Imagine it being too cold in May for the true heirs and defenders of the republic. Maybe the overweight, balding, grey-headed politicians will get chilled in May. Let them stay home and watch on television. Let these old men remember that Ataturk slept on a rock before the battle of Dumlupinar. Anyway, why should Turkish youth be confined to puny stadiums when they own the entire country? Such nonsense. But of course a holiday dedicated to the victory over the western imperialistic powers must prove embarrassing to today’s Turkey whose government and army aid and abet the very same western imperialistic powers in their oil-based wars under the false claim of advancing democracy. As Ataturk well knew, the deceit of imperialists knows no limit.

Like Ataturk, Turkish youth knows its enemy. All this was foreseen. Recite again what you young people know so well, Ataturk’s Speech to the Turkish Youth. “Those in power may be found in treachery and may even have united their own interests with the desires of the invaders.” So consider conditions today. Consider the politics of chaos and shock. Precious forests and rivers destroyed. Mountains exploded. Urban air reeking with auto emissions and coal smoke. Beaches and shorelines raped for tourist development. Labor unions bludgeoned to submission. Culture ignored. The arts abased. Artists abused. Dramatic theater collapsed. A brutal police force forever attacking the citizens with pepper gas, clubs, water cannons, and now electromagnetic ray weapons courtesy of America’s Raytheon Corporation; the USA is such a generous, freedom-loving country. The thoroughly disreputable Turkish judicial system where electronic eavesdropping, forgeries, secret witnesses, tampered evidence, and political meddling pollute the law. Consider further the rampant jailing of all opposed to this socio-political nightmare. The purge and collapse of the army, an army whose senior leadership confessed that it could no longer protect its troops, and then ran away. The de facto collapse of the so-called opposition party who ineptly and pathetically renders abject resistance, thus collaborating in the demise of the secular state, while maintaining their benefits going through the motions of employment for a fascist parliament.

All this is why 19 May is so important. As Ataturk said, it’s a matter of independence or death! And in a nation where 50% of the population is under the age of 30, where is its political representation? Isn’t it time to give a true, powerful, organized and distinctive political voice to the nation’s youth?

And it is great to know that youth in Turkey is not alone. The Turkish Youth Union (Türkiye Gençlik Birliği) has organized an international 19 May celebration. Through its efforts, thousands of young people (of all ages) from over 50 countries will converge on Istanbul for three days, May 17-19. There will be an Anti-Imperialist Youth Forum, a performance festival concert, and on 19 May a demonstration at Beyoğlu Tünel Meydanı in İstanbul . Please see its VIVA 19 MAYIS website for details at

It is well that these young people should come. Youth is in danger all the over the world. A recent report from UNICEF highlights this growing catastrophe among adolescents, defined as being those between 10-19 years old.
- 71 million children of lower secondary school age are not in school, particularly girls. Turkey’s latest educational fiasco regarding the government’s religious education initiative virtually assures that young Turkish girls will fall further behind educationally.
- Unemployment is rising. Overall education levels are falling.
- 1.4 million adolescents die each year from road traffic accidents and other violence such as suicide.
- 2.2 million adolescents, 60% of whom are girls, live with HIV.
- More than one third of the women in the developing world were married before reaching the age of eighteen. This increases the risk of domestic violence. And of course, such marriages frequently result in early childbirth, the leading killer of adolescent girls in Africa.
And in such a world Saudi Arabia’s Grand Mufti Abdul-Aziz Al al-Sheikh supports marriage for 10 year old girls. No problem, he says, “Good upbringing makes a girl ready to perform all marital duties at that age.” Such are the ignoramuses and religious pedophiles that imperil our young people. The grand mufti should be in prison rather than a mosque. But who will put him there, oil being so very important?

Ataturk, who called everyone “kid” (coçuk), was once asked what is “youth.” He replied that it has nothing to do with age. It’s about idealism, he said, being open to revolutionary changes, and then passing those changes to future generations. It’s about being followers of knowledge and science. A seventy year old idealist is young, he said, while a twenty year old closed-minded fanatic is old-aged.

19 May honors Turkish youth. It reaffirms its importance as the nation’s most important asset. It reaffirms the victory of enlightenment over the dark doctrines of orthodoxy and submission. And it honors the great, noble work of the forever-young Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, a man of epic accomplishment. A man who, like the mythic Ulysses, was destined, in the words of the poet Alfred Tennyson,

To follow knowledge like a sinking star

Beyond the utmost bound of human thought…

To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield.

May the inexhaustible energy of youth follow the same star that enlightens the heavens and the earth and bring better days to this suffering world.

YAŞASIN ON DOKUZ MAYIS!

YAŞASIN Türkiye Gençlik Birliği!

YAŞASIN Mustafa Kemal!

Cem Ryan

11 May 2012
May 11, 2012
South Azerbaijanis as a new bargaining chip in resolving the Iranian problem

Gulnara Inanch, director Online International Information and Analytical center Ethnoglobus.az, related info turkishnews.com, [email protected]

On 12 and 13 April Ankara (Turkey) hold a forum of South Azerbaijanis. Public Forum was organized by the Organization of the Azerbaijanis in Turkey.
Director of the Center for Strategic Studies of Caucasian (Kafkassam) Dr. Hasan Oktay in an exclusive interview with AMI “News-Azerbaijan,” commented on the question of what was the purpose of this forum, and whyTurkey, afterIsrael, started paying attention to the issue ofSouth Azerbaijan.
– What are the goals of establishing in Turkey World Azerbaijani Congress (WAC)?
– World Azerbaijanis Congress has been active within recent years. Along with this, there are a number of similar structures. The Republic of Azerbaijan, developing close ties with the diasporas, through them, tries to promote the interests of the state. The successes of the Armenian and Jewish diasporas, which were taken as an example for Azerbaijan, has not yet borne fruit. It led to the occurrence of new organizations seeking funding proportions allocated for Azerbaijan, among them there is just a competition. This is the reason for creation of different organizations under the name of the World Azerbaijanis Congress (WAC). One can see that these different organizations, working with Jewish organizations in exchange for financial support create good relations between Jewish Organizations and southern Azerbaijanis.
Analogical efforts are short-term efforts. Here the main goal is money.
In order to get financing, WAC is divided into four parts. Israel also believes that through these organizations, establishes relationships with Iranian Azerbaijanis.
– The new Congress is established in Turkey, and what do you think, does it mean that Ankara, tries to take control of the organization of Iranian Azeris, like most of the world Azerbaijanism?
– We try to present the problem of Azerbaijan and southern Azerbaijanis to world community, in neutral and scientific manner. There are 35 million South Azerbaijanis in Iran and 9 million people live in the Republic of Azerbaijan. If we also add here the diasporas, then the number of Azeri Turks will be around 50 million people. Kafkassam, speaking more than a party, take into account the factor of this large ethnic group in the Caucasus, is trying to promote its activation and efficiency. Azerbaijan is trying to unite the world Azerbaijanis. At the same time carrying out activities in this direction not in Azerbaijan but in Turkey indicates the intention to rely on the strength of this country.
Therefore, the union of the forces ofAzerbaijan andTurkey in the diaspora, politics will be more effective. IfTurkey does not support this initiative ofAzerbaijan,Azerbaijan can expect disappointment. This is nothing more than an initiative. Such initiatives should be involved only non-governmental organizations.
– Jewish organizations and individuals representing Israel expanded the campaign to protect the rights of South Azerbaijanis. Do the Turkish non-governmental organizations coordinate the activities of Jewish organizations in this matter?
– The Iran-Israel tension covers a wide geographic region. This conflict will affect non-Persian ethnic as the elements of living in Iran.
Southern Azerbaijanis, as the most important element, coming to the first plan.
The main factor of the war is the exclusion of war opponents and forcing it into the peace on their own terms. It can be either by force or by using other methods, including outreach to compel the enemy to the peace negotiations.
Therefore, it is natural for Israel to use all non-military ways of forcing Iran to the peace. Southern Azerbaijanis and therefore go on the agenda.
Unfortunately, carrying on the agenda of the Iranian Azerbaijanis, are not considered internal conditions and other factors of Iran.
Azerbaijanis do not have to turn to the elements, such as the Kurds of Iraq, inviting Americans to the occupation of their homeland.
As a result, the future of the Kurds in Iraq is in doubt.
In its contacts with the Iranian Azeris we remind them of the Kurds, in what situation they were in the invasion of Americans in Iran.
They are warned to be more attentive to the issue of military operations in Iran.
Affirmation of Azerbaijanis as a significant element of Iranian democracy, it is very important from the perspective of the region’s future.
– Meanwhile, an Israeli social activist Avigdor Eskin is carrying out campaign with a group of Russian experts, including ethnic Jews for the rights of Iranian Azerbaijanis. It is believed that by this way, Israel and Jewish organizations, by protecting the rights of Iran’s Azeri nationalists, are trying to manipulate them. How can you comment on this campaign?
– We are closely watching activity of Avigdor Eskin. This is passing interest. Some Azeris are trying to capitalize on this partnership. They have no place in the South Azerbaijani politics. Azeri Turks of Iran will not get into the situation of the Kurds of Iraq. Israel should not turn into an instrument of Azeri Turks in a war with Iran. But it is a psychological operation. Israel, being in confrontation with Iran will use all non-military tools. The easiest of which are the Azerbaijani Turks.
Can Iran be drawn into a civil war in South Azerbaijan? This is the most important point on which most anti-Iranian forces sharpened. Unfortunately, many Iranian Azerbaijanis were forced to leave the country under pressure from the authorities, not finding shelter, are drawn into these games. It comes from the frustration of South Azerbaijanis. But such attempts have no chance to share Iran.
Southern Azerbaijanis, fighting for their basic rights and freedoms in Iran, can achieve the rule of democracy in the region. The biggest problem of Iran is the lack of democracy. Democratic Iran is a favorable country for South Azerbaijanis living here. Iran is the birthplace of South Azerbaijanis. Before the 1924 Iranian Turks were in power in Iran. Problems of Iranian Turks can be solved in a democracy.
Iran must take this into account. IfTehran continues to use unequal policy against Azerbaijanis, then later on the agenda may withdraw part ofIran. Iran, instead of the disturbances should be made available to Azerbaijanis for their rights.
– For a long time there are discussion on the possibility of abolishing the Committee on Diaspora in Azerbaijan and the creation of the department in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in charge of the Diaspora. Because world organizations of Azerbaijan, in contrast to diaspora organizations of other nations, equal in Baku, between the creation of the World Azerbaijanis Congress and the rumors of the Committee on the Elimination of the Diaspora can be traced some connection …
– Azerbaijan Diaspora issues created considering Armenian activity. If Azerbaijan is going to really control the diaspora in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, it is quite normal. Because Armenia under the name of Diaspora Ministry manages the Armenian Diaspora. Individual Azerbaijanis in many places, act as opponents to the Azerbaijani authorities that concerned the official Baku.
Therefore, the intention of diaspora activities in the government structures is natural. But if we consider the terms of the diaspora and its benefits to the Azerbaijani authorities, it does not lead to a very healthy results. Providing diaspora freedom and support their activities will be more useful to Azerbaijani state.
– How are Iranian issues seen from Turkey?
– Iran is a large and specific country. Iran has invisible influence over Azerbaijan: no matter what angle Azerbaijan is interested in the South Azerbaijanis, Iran through the southern Azeris can create problems for Baku. Iran, by supporting Armenia in the Garabagh conflict may close the path of Azerbaijan interest in his Iranian compatriots. In the Iranian-Azerbaijani relations there are a lot of unresolved issues. Iran has every opportunity to use them in their favor.
Settlement of status of the Caspian Sea is also in the hands ofIran andAzerbaijan can not use the pool to the fullest. InTurkey, where it is easy to operate non-governmental organizations, it is easier to carry out the activities of the South Azerbaijanis.
– Will the World Azerbaijanis Congress be engaged in protecting the rights of South Azerbaijanis?
– Keep in mind the sensitivity of Iran in this regard. Turkey initially experienced difficulty with the name “Friends of Syria” which has not yet dissipated.
Excessive activity of WAC on the South-Azerbaijani issue, considering the sensitivity of Azerbaijan in the region, could prompt Iran to the use of leverage. We have to consider these issues and power of damage.
Of course, it is necessary to maintain the democratic rights of South Azerbaijanis, but that interest should not be a tool to invade Iran.
During a meeting with Iran on any platform, social, political and social demands of the southern Azeris should be tabled. Azerbaijan does not need to pass the constitutional framework. Features pressure Iran on Azerbaijan is based on probabilities. Do not ignore this reality, as it may become unhappy adventure.

– From what prism does Turkey consider the rights of Iranian Azerbaijanis and how does Turkey plan to use these plans?
– First, Turkey, in principle, rejects the interference in the internal affairs of its neighbors. Along with this, Turkey considers the rights of South Azerbaijanis in the framework of democracy and the Iranian laws, on all platforms met with Iranian officials. Thousands of Iranian Turks emigrated to Turkey, whose fate is closely interested in the Turkish authorities. South Azerbaijanis came to Turkey with some hope which facilitate the work of Turkey, and at the same time made it more difficult. It is easy, because Turkey has control over the subject, and in a lawful manner to protect the rights of Iranian Azerbaijanis, who emigrated to the country. Difficulties in the fact that Iran is afraid that Turkey by the help of Iranian Turks will try to interfere in their internal affairs. This creates a problem for Turkey.
Turkey defends the legal rights of their fellow residents in this location, without interfering in the internal affairs of its neighbors. And this protection will continue.
The requirement of the South Azerbaijanis allowing them to live in human conditions is a fair request. Iran can no longer delay in granting them this right. Otherwise, it will give his enemies a big trump card and this card will forever be used.

May 11, 2012
U.S.-Turkey Relations

U.S.-Turkey Relations

A New Partnership

Chairs: Madeleine K. Albright, Chair, Albright Stonebridge Group LLC, and Stephen J. Hadley, United States Institute of Peace

Director: Steven A. Cook, Hasib J. Sabbagh Senior Fellow for Middle Eastern Studies

U.S.-Turkey Relations – us-turkey-relations

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Publisher Council on Foreign Relations Press

Release Date May 2012

Price $15.00

96 pages

ISBN 978-0-87609-525-6

Task Force Report No. 69

Overview

Turkey is a rising regional and global power facing, as is the United States, the challenges of political transitions in the Middle East, bloodshed in Syria, and Iran’s pursuit of nuclear weapons. As a result, it is incumbent upon the leaders of the United States and Turkey to define a new partnership “in order to make a strategic relationship a reality,” says a new Council on Foreign Relations (CFR)–sponsored Independent Task Force.

The bipartisan Task Force is chaired by former secretary of state Madeleine K. Albright and former national security adviser Stephen J. Hadley, and is directed by Steven A. Cook, CFR’s Hasib J. Sabbagh senior fellow for Middle Eastern studies. The Task Force includes twenty-three prominent experts who represent a variety of perspectives and backgrounds.

“Turkey may not yet have the status of one of Washington’s traditional European allies,” the report explains, “but there is good strategic reason for the bilateral relationship to grow and mature into a mutually beneficial partnership that can manage a complex set of security, economic, humanitarian, and environmental problems.”

The relationship should reflect “not only common American-Turkish interests, but also Turkey’s new stature as an economically and politically successful country with a new role to play in a changing Middle East,” argues the Task Force in the report, U.S.-Turkey Relations: A New Partnership.

Turkey is more democratic, prosperous, and politically influential than ever before. Still there are worrying domestic developments that raise questions about Turkey’s democratic practices. According to the Task Force, these concerns include: “the prosecution and detention of journalists, the seemingly open-ended and at times questionable pursuit of military officers and other establishment figures for alleged conspiracy against the government, the apparent illiberal impulses of some Turkish leaders, the still-unresolved Kurdish issue, and the lack of progress on a new constitution.”

The Task Force finds that overall, Turkey is not well understood in the United States. The Task Force “seeks to promote a better understanding of the new Turkey—its strengths, vulnerabilities, and ambitions—in order to assess its regional and global role and make recommendations for a new partnership of improved and deepened U.S.-Turkey ties.”

To make the vision for a new U.S.-Turkey partnership a reality, Ankara and Washington should observe the following principles:

equality and mutual respect for each other’s interests;

confidentiality and trust;

close and intensive consultations to identify common goals and strategies on issues of critical importance;

avoidance of foreign policy surprises; and

recognition and management of inevitable differences between Washington and Ankara.

via U.S.-Turkey Relations – Council on Foreign Relations.

May 9, 2012
It Will not happen to me. Guess What? It Will! Chapter 8

It Will Not Happen to Me! Guess What? It Wll !!!

Chapter 8

We as concerned citizens must rescue our governments from the privileged few or we will find ourselves as their slaves. Freedom of religion and Bilingualism: Please remember that these chapters are being written because the solutions written in Part One have not been implemented, or worse yet the world economies have collapsed. We are now in the 21st century and moving very fast as far as the standard of living has progressed. The problem is that we citizens must also change to survive. We must welcome change in order to improve on our freedoms. The shock of changing our life styles will be minor versus revisiting the dark ages. Even though those who are able are already dependent upon government assistance and suffer. Rebellion in various ways, individually and as motley groups, should be discouraged. The United States has been a good example of Freedom of Religion until the US Supreme Court banned the use of the word GOD and public prayer in schools. A better example is Turkey after WW II, which had as its First President, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, who is now recognized as on the great men of the 20th century. Turkey has always allowed freedom of religion and many historical events and places are there. One of the main reasons Turkey is a noble and superb nation today is because of this man his freedoms. Just compare Turkey with its neighbors to the south. Another one of the major reasons for Turkey’s success as a nation is the separation of church and state. Arrafat’s statement “anyone wearing a fez tomorrow will lose their head.” The very next day one was wearing a fez. Religions that prophesy harmony and love should be respected. Ones that use force should not be. An individual has the right to choose one’s own beliefs. A Persian Rug made in Turkey has an “error” or mistake woven in it. They believe only God is perfect, so they purposely sew an error in it. If you cannot find an error, it probably was not made in Turkey. There is a lesson for the whole world to learn from Turkey. A nation must unite under one banner that allows freedom of expressions and feelings of the individual of his own rights. Bilingualism is another problem. Right now the United States is facing this problem. It had a similar problem with the South after the civil war and right into the 1930’s with the southern accent. Radio and television stopped that game. When a person came on national television and started speaking he became the butt of jokes. No one likes being laughed at and it soon changed to the normal language. A more serious problem is with the Spanish speaking population. Almost everything has become bi lingual. You make a telephone call to a business and the operator tells you to press one for Spanish. This slows a country’s growth down because a certain percentage of the population will refuse to learn the other’s language and barriers are built, both socially and economically. This is a self-defeatist attitude that can cause long-term problems. When I was a kid in the 1940’s and 50’s I had friends that were German, French, Greek, Italian, and Polish. When I was in their homes they would speak in their native tongue, especially when they were scolding my friend. I could tell by the look on his face or the tone of their voice. In public everyone spoke excellent English! A perfect example how bilingualism can slow down a nation is the Province of Quebec in Canada. It is a beautiful province with all kinds of natural resources. The Bank of Montreal was a major bank nationally. The Montreal Stock Exchange was a major exchange for the whole nation. The Quebec Hydro provided cheap power and they had people. In Canada people are important, for the farther north one goes the less people. The United States and Canadian border has to be the friendliest one in the world. Underneath all this prosperity the French citizens were simmering with anger. They felt they were probably being treated as second-class citizens. In some cases this was true because many of the schools were French only. In a major English speaking country this paved a road to poverty. If your education is not in the main stream of the nation that you live in then ones earning power becomes limited. Outside influences tend to be shunned and the power of wage earnings slips by. Exchange of ideas is of the uppermost importance for a thriving community. At first they wanted to secede and become a separate country. To make their point they started bombing mailboxes. The net result of this was that the wealthy middle and upper classes of society moved out of the province. The Bank of Montreal is just a regular bank and the Montreal exchange has been overpowered by the Toronto exchange. Statistically it rated 2nd behind the province of Ontario where the State Capital is located, but other provinces are growing faster. Who would want to locate a business in a province that spoke French when the rest of the nation is English speaking? A sad fact and tale was when Charles De Gaulle was president of France he saw an opportunity to come to Canada and promote France. He came to Montreal to speak and over a million Frenchman came to hear their legendary person. The problem was there was not a Frenchman around that understood a word he was saying. He was speaking proper French while over decades their slang French and become a language of its own. So Turkey is a positive example for nations to follow while Quebec is a sad example. Here is an example when one portion of society closes its cultural barriers to outsiders, or worse yet, refuses to blend in. If 10 percent speaks a foreign language in the nation it resides in, then it misses the opportunities that the 90 percent have or enjoy. Economically it is like swimming upstream just before the waterfall. The survivors that are able to grab a branch of freedom will soon meld into the “common good” of the nation. That majority that succumbs or tries to please the minority will find itself standing on a pile of cow manure. A nation should have a common language. Computers today can translate easily. A segment of a population that demands dual languages is hurting itself by not being able to exchange ideas freely. The free exchange of ideas is very important. While Adolf Hitler held book-burning celebrations in Nazi Germany, he could not kill the ideas gotten from those books. Even today in some parts of the world, the Bible has been memorized whereby services are held for worship. A STRONG NATION WILL LISTEN TO THE MINORITY, AND THE MINORITY WILL APPRECIATE THAT IT WAS HEARD, BUT THE MAJORITY MUST RULE FOR THE COMMON GOOD FOR ALL. This means that as in the case of the United States, it became the melting pot for all citizens to enjoy the fruits of everyone’s labor. This is what Senator Arthur Vandenberg did 1945 for the good of the country and the world. He backed the President of the United States on foreign policy while he was a member of the minority party. William O’Neil, ‘INVESTOR’S BUSINESS DAILY’ Chairman and founder, wrote an article for the Paper on April 25, 2012 on page B5 on ‘How to Find & Own America’s Greatest Opportunities’. He is referring to stock investments, but his opening paragraphs are a superb summary for this chapter. “ We live in the greatest country in the world. How did it evolve? The U.S. system, that is how. It’s your freedom of speech, religion and the press. You are free to own property and keep arms. Every citizen over 18 is free to vote in elections every two and four years, and replace weak or failed leaders. You are free to work, learn, create, innovate and invent because of our way of life. We are a nation of innovators because of these freedoms. Our GDP per person is larger than any other country. That is why millions of people continue to come here to participate in our exceptional freedom and opportunity. Nothing can hold you back except your own attitude or level of determination.” Those three freedoms are most important. Freedom of speech, religion and the press go along way in building a healthy nation.

May 4, 2012
Biden pushes leadership role for Turkey’s Islamist leaders

On Friday Vice President Joe Biden offered Turkey’s Islamist government a leading role in the Middle East, despite its recent crackdown on dissidents, expansion of Islamic culture and education, and regional conflicts with Greece and Israel.

Palestinians hold a Turkish flag during a Hamas protest against Israel's interception of Gaza-bound ships near the sea port in Gaza City, Monday, May 31, 2010. Israeli naval commandos on Monday stormed a flotilla of ships carrying aid and hundreds of pro-Palestinian activists to the blockaded Gaza Strip, killing at least 10 passengers in a dramatic predawn raid that set off worldwide condemnation and a diplomatic crisis.(AP Photo/Khalil Hamra) Original Filename: Mideast_Israel_Palestinians_JRL134.jpg Read more:

“We’re looking for Turkish leadership in the rest of that entire region,” Biden declared at a fundraiser attended by roughly 200 people from the Turkish and Azerbaijani communities, according to a White House pool report.

“It’s a model as to how you can have an Islamic population, an Islamic state and a democracy, something the rest of the region is groping to figure out how to do,” he told the audience, who paid up to $2,500 each to attend the fundraiser.

Since last June Turkey’s Islamist government, led by Recep Erdogan, “has restricted freedom of expression, association, and assembly with laws that allow authorities to jail its critics for many months or years while they stand trial for alleged terrorism offenses on the basis of flimsy evidence,” according to a January report by the left-wing group Human Rights Watch.

The Turkish government’s Islamist policies also clash with Biden’s progressive policies, and with American culture and laws in general.

For example, on April 18 Biden touted the Violence Against Women Act and slammed GOP proposals to upgrade the law.

However, in Turkey, “violence in the home is endemic, and police and courts regularly fail to protect women who have applied for protection orders under the Family Protection Law [and] reports of spouses and family members killing women rose in 2011,” Human Rights Watch reported.

via Joe Biden | Turkey Leadership Role | Islamist Leaders | The Daily Caller.

April 29, 2012