Tag: nato summit

ANKARA – Hürriyet Daily News

US President Barack Obama pats Turkish President Abdullah Gül on the shoulder as he walks past during a NATO meeting. AA photo

Turkish officials expressed their satisfaction with the new Strategic Concept approved at a NATO summit in Lisbon over the weekend, yet the country is likely to be at the center of continued debate following the meeting.

Turkey plays a major role in two key, and heated, subjects discussed at the Lisbon Summit: creating a shield against ballistic missiles and a formula for better-functioning relations between the alliance and the European Union.

One of the few members of NATO that is not also a part of the EU, Turkey objected to singling out Iran as a threat to be thwarted by the missile shield. The alliance’s decision not to mention Iran was seen in Ankara as a successful result to the Lisbon Summit.

“The alliance does not consider any country to be its adversary. However, no one should doubt NATO’s resolve if the security of any of its members were to be threatened,” the new concept read. Despite granting Turkey’s request not to name Iran as the main source of a potential attack, NATO members’ concerns about the country’s controversial nuclear program were the primary reason for speeding up the missile-shield efforts.

More on NATO summit

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Diplomats cautioned that the text of the Strategic Concept was “only highlighting the principles and calling on NATO to quickly ready necessary guidance covering technical details,” but these have not yet been worked out.

The NATO meeting also marked a breakthrough in relations with Russia, with President Dmitry Medvedev attending a summit with the alliance for the first time in two years and pronouncing himself happy with his welcome, Agence France-Presse reported.

“A period of very difficult, tense relations has been overcome,” Medvedev said, promising that Moscow would study Europe’s plans to design a joint missile defense system and consider taking part in its development.

According to the joint communiqué issued Saturday after the completion of the summit, the North Atlantic Council will develop “missile defense consultation, command and control arrangements” by the time NATO defense ministers meet in March 2011 and have created an action plan to implement the missile shield by June 2011.

By clearly setting the timetable for political and technical preparations for the missile shield, the communiqué signals further negotiations within the alliance, and between Turkey and main powers of NATO.

According to the initial plan, the missile shield is expected to function by 2012 after a consensus is reached on where the radars and other technical equipment will be deployed, how the system will be commanded and how it is going to be financed.

“Turkey was asking to be part of the command system especially on matters directly concerning Turkey,” Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has said.

Ankara seeks to have NATO’s İzmir headquarters designated as the missile-defense command center instead of Germany’s Ramstein base, as the United States has insisted. Turkey’s good relations with countries such as Iran and Syria – both believed to be developing nuclear weapons – will help reduce the tension between the alliance and these countries, Ankara has argued.

NATO had planned to close the İzmir base as part of a restructuring program of its operational headquarters and command centers, but Turkish officials want it to remain open in order to retain Ankara’s influence within the alliance.

Ongoing discussions at NATO’s Brussels headquarters additionally foresee Turkey as the venue for radar deployment and some Eastern and Central European countries as the venue for delivery systems of the anti-ballistic missiles.

“Nothing is certain yet,” a Turkish diplomat told the Hürriyet Daily News & Economic Review on Sunday, adding that the negotiations will continue. “The technical sphere of the issue is multidimensional. Setting aside political preferences, the technical requirements and defensive necessities will be much more important.”

NATO-EU relationship still vague

The other key issue facing Turkey going into the Lisbon Summit was how to best formulate the cooperation between NATO and the European Union, which comprises 21 of the alliance’s 28 members. Though the new Security Concept agreed to in Lisbon touched on this issue as an important matter, it did not provide much in the way of overcoming the ongoing stalemate. Noting that countries such as Turkey and Norway, both non-EU members of the alliance, had made significant contributions to address common security challenges, the concept advised: “For the strategic partnership between NATO and the EU, [these countries’] fullest involvement in these efforts is essential.”

Though Turkey seems to be satisfied with the use of the term “fullest involvement,” diplomats underscored that the current situation did not offer much to change the playing field. NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen is known to be working on the matter and is tasked with submitting a plan in April 2011.

via Turkey unshielded from NATO debate – Hurriyet Daily News and Economic Review.

By Carsten Hoffmann Nov 21, 2010, 14:25 GMT

Istanbul – One leader happy about the increased influence of his country in the NATO alliance after this weekend’s Lisbon summit is Turkish President Abdullah Gul.

Ankara regards it as a major success story for its own diplomacy that Turkey’s neighbour, Iran, was not specifically named as an enemy in NATO’s decision on a missile shield for Europe.

Turkey does not want to see the region head towards another Iraq, Gul told journalists.

‘We were worried, but now we are pretty satisfied with the results,’ he said after the NATO summit.

As the only state in NATO which has a majority Muslim population, Turkey is intent on not letting itself be pushed into a hostile relationship with its neighbour.

For one thing, there are economic interests with the two countries intent on intensifying their trade relations in the years ahead, the dispute over Iran’s nuclear activities notwithstanding.

In this aim, Turkey is now positioning itself as a hub for Iranian energy exports.

There are fundamental differences between Turkey and its western partners in NATO about how to deal with Iran and its mullahs. Turkish politicians have repeatedly resisted calls for punitive action in the dispute over suspicions that Iran aims to build a nuclear bomb.

Instead of sanctions or threats of a military strike, Ankara argues for dialogue with Tehran, even though upon closer scrutiny the two countries are also rivals in their region.

‘The Persians invented the game of chess,’ one leading Turkish diplomat commented. ‘If you get into a game with them, then you have to play it all the way to the end.’

Turkey is pushing instead for a major coup – a new security plan covering the entire Mideast region. Among others, this would entail recognizing the borders between the Palestinian areas and Israel.

For Ankara, a new security framework must also include by necessity a clarification about the existence, and the exact numbers, of Israeli nuclear bombs.

The aim must be a nuclear weapons-free zone ranging from Iran to Israel, Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu says. Turkey considers it an injustice that the western partners will not engage in the dispute with Israel on the issue that this would require.

However, Ankara has so far not been able to present any convincing success stories in its own Mideast mediation efforts. Diplomats say Turkey is becoming more important, yet is also prone to overestimating itself and its own clout.

Now that the erstwhile good relationship with Israel has dramatically worsened, and Ankara at the same time has made fraternal gestures in Tehran’s direction, there have even been some doubts voiced out loud about Turkey’s reliability as an alliance member.

But in Lisbon, at least, the bonds between Turkey and the West were shown to be robust, the left-liberal Turkish daily Radikal commented on Sunday. Any talk about Turkey drifting away from the West has no future.

via ANALYSIS: Turkey claims success for its diplomacy at NATO summit – Monsters and Critics.

[20/November/2010]

LISBON, Nov 20 (Saba) — At the end of their first-day summit meeting in Lisbon Friday night, NATO leaders adopted a new Strategic Concept that will serve as the Alliance’s roadmap for the next 10 years and that reconfirms the commitment to defend one another against attack as the bedrock of Euro-Atlantic security, according to Kuwait News Agency (KUNA).

“The world is changing. We face new threats and new challenges. And this Strategic Concept will ensure that NATO remains as effective as ever in defending our peace, our security and our prosperity” NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen told a press conference last night.

He noted that the new Strategic Concept offers partner countries around the globe more opportunities for dialogue and cooperation and commits NATO to reinforce cooperation with Russia.

It also keeps the door firmly open to membership in NATO to European democracies.

“We attach great importance to peace and stability in the Gulf region, and we intend to strengthen our cooperation in the Istanbul Cooperation Initiative, ” says the 38-point document.

“We will aim to deepen the cooperation with current members of the Mediterranean Dialogue and be open to the inclusion in the Mediterranean Dialogue of other countries of the region.” “We will aim develop a deeper security partnership with our Gulf partners and remain ready to welcome new partners in the Istanbul Cooperation Initiative,” notes the Strategic Concept.

NATO’s Istanbul Cooperation Initiative, launched at the Alliance’s Summit in the Turkish city in June 2004, offer countries of the broader Middle East region practical bilateral security cooperation with NATO.

Bahrian, Kuwait, Qatar and the UAE are members of the ICI.

The new Strategic Concept urges Allies to invest in key capabilities to meet emerging threats and agree to develop within NATO the capabilities necessary to defend against ballistic missile attacks and cyber attacks.

“This is an action plan which sets out clearly the concrete steps NATO will take,” stressed Rasmussen , as he presented the new Strategic Concept in Lisbon.

“It will put in place an Alliance that is more effective, more engaged and more efficient than ever before,” he said.

Stressing that the time has come for NATO to develop new capabilities and new partnerships, the new Strategic Concept paves the way for the Alliance to modernise its ability to carry out its core mission of collective defence, while continuing to promote international stability.

“NATO’s fundamental and enduring purpose is to safeguard the freedom and security of all its members by political and military means. Today, the Alliance remains an essential source of stability in an unpredictable world,” says the document.

The document highlights the need for NATO to remain ready to play an active role in crisis management operations, whenever it is called to act.

Rasmussen told reporters that NATO wants a world without nuclear weapons but underlined that “as long as nuclear weapons exist, NATO will remain a nuclear alliance.” The Strategic Concept notes that “the proliferation of nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction, and their means of delivery, threatens incalculable consequences for global stability and prosperity.” “During the next decade, proliferation will be most acute in some of the world’s most volatile regions,” it states.

“Terrorism poses a direct threat to the security of the citizens of NATO countries, and to international stability and prosperity more broadly.

“Extremist groups continue to spread to, and in, areas of strategic importance to the Alliance, and modern technology increases the threat and potential impact of terrorist attacks, in particular if terrorists were to acquire nuclear, chemical, biological or radiological capabilities,” it warns.

Saba

Asserting that Turkey has taken a principled stance in the NATO Summit Heads of State and Government held in Lisbon, President Gül proclaimed: “Turkey has indeed reminded NATO that it is an organization for defense, thus preventing misunderstanding.”

President Abdullah Gül and First Lady Hayrünnisa Gül paid a two-day visit to the city of Lisbon on the occasion of the NATO Summit of Heads of State and Government.

Heads of State and Government were welcomed by the Portuguese Premier, Jose Sokrates, and the NATO Secretary General, Anders Fogh Rasmussen and his spouse, at the entrance of the fair where the summit was held

During the summit, two study sessions and a working dinner were held, both of which the heads of state and government attended. The leaders of the countries contributing to the ISAF got together on Afghanistan and the NATO-Russia Council Meeting was held.

NEW ROAD MAP FOR NATO

During the Lisbon Summit, the New Strategic Concept, which will determine the road map for the alliance for the next 10-15 years, was adopted. The leaders also discussed such issues as NATO’s reform and transformation, Afghanistan, the NATO-Russia and NATO-EU relations, NATO’s partnerships, NATO’s enlargement as well as the missile defense project.

Sharing his evaluation about the NATO Summit in Lisbon, President Gül commented on the defense system: “These are issues about principles. The resolution is within the framework of our wish, which we are pleased with.”

“THE OUTCOME IS PLEASING”

The President also noted that the summit had two significant issues in particular, one of which is the establishment of a defense system against ballistic missiles on which Turkey has taken a principled stance from the very beginning.

“This defense system is being established against ballistic missiles, not against this or that country. It is being developed in the way it will include and protect each member of NATO against whoever has or will have these missiles and the cost will be shared by all. This is all about principles,” said President Gül.

NATO-EU RELATIONS

The other important issue, the President emphasized, is the bilateral relations between NATO and the EU, drawing attention to the fact that the two bodies work on many problematic issues. Turkey, he declared, is a member country of NATO and conducting the EU membership negotiation process, saying: “Some problems used to emerge in this regard sometimes. There are EU countries which are not members of NATO as well. Turkey has taken an important stance here again.” The President noted that this issue was taken into consideration while the Strategic Concept was being written.

“TURKEY IS FULFILLING THE NATO MISSION”

The President informed his audience about the defense system: “Some say this issue is limited to Turkey’s neighbors. I would like to state this clearly: Turkey is conducting the NATO mission by itself as a matter of fact by attaching great importance to the security, peace and stability in the region. What does NATO stand for? It is security, stability and peace. Within this context, when you examine Turkey’s relations with her neighbors and activities in the region, all that Turkey is doing regarding this very issue should be appreciated indeed. Many a country has ballistic missiles today whose range is different. This defense system is against these short, medium or long-range missiles. This system will protect each of the NATO members’ territories, peoples and military facilities as well against possible ballistic missile attacks.”

“AFGHANISTAN BELONGS TO THE AFGHANS”

The President, in a response to a journalist asking whether Turkey would withdraw its soldiers from Afghanistan as of 2011, said: “It is premature to talk about or to schedule such things. On the other hand, we are saying this at NATO meetings: No conclusion can be reached through military power in Afghanistan; otherwise, there will be no security, stability or peace there. Above all, we must win the hearts of the Afghan people. Afghanistan belongs to the Afghan people. This everyone must understand and they must act there respecting the Afghans’ culture, traditions and beliefs. Military expenditure itself cannot guarantee peace, stability and security. Turkey has voiced this fact during NATO meetings and in other platforms.”

“OUR PRINCIPLED STANCE HAS PROTECTED NATO’S PRESTIGE”

The President, responding to questions regarding the summit, maintained: “Our principled stance has protected NATO’s prestige and prevented it from losing credibility. Everyone has witness this very fact. Turkey, as a matter of fact, has reminded NATO that it is an organization for defense, thus preventing misunderstanding as well. This is the outcome of the close partnership between Turkey and the US.”

GÜL’S TETE-A-TETES DURING THE NATO SUMMIT

President Abdullah Gül, after the meeting on Afghanistan as part of the NATO Summit of Heads of State and Government held in Lisbon, met with the US President, Barack Obama. He later separately met with President Mikheil Saakashvili of Georgia. President Gül also received the Dutch Prime Minister, Mark Rutte and the Italian Premier, Silvio Berlusconi.