Turkey Foreign Policy

A pivotal American ally from the opening round of the Persian Gulf crisis, Turkey is settling in for a long siege, exerting tough economic, military and psychological pressure on neighboring Iraq. So far this week, Turkey has welcomed nearly two dozen U.S. F-16 interceptors to an air base in the south that is already crowded with American ordnance, and it has extended by a year the expiring leases on more than a dozen American bases and listening posts on Turkish soil.

Turkey's foreign policy has come full circle in the last year. Far from confronting Washington on a range of issues, Ankara is embracing its membership in NATO while working closely with Washington on Middle East issues, including Iran and coordinating Syria policy. What has changed? First and foremost, Ankara has come to appreciate a constant in the value of its foreign policy: Turkey is east if you view it from the perspective of the West, and west if you view it from the perspective of the East.

The commander of Turkey's land forces was appointed chief of the general staff Tuesday to replace a general who resigned because he differs with President Turgut Ozal over Persian Gulf policy. Prime Minister Yildirim Akbulut announced the appointment of Gen. Dogan Gures to succeed Gen. Necip Torumtay, who resigned Monday. The appointment was in accordance with military tradition, since Gures was the second-highest-ranking army general after Torumtay. However, it may not solve Ozal's problems.

With a twinkle in his eye, Mumtaz Soysal, Turkey's new foreign minister, fenced with reporters questioning his personal impact on the relationship between the Western powers and his own country, NATO's strategic ally on the border with Iraq. How did he define his policy? Pro-Saddam Hussein? Isolationist? Nationalist? Opportunist? Was he a dove? A hawk? "I am not a bird," was all the 65-year-old professor would volunteer. He turned to welcome more guests to the terrace of his official mansion.

Turkish President Turgut Ozal said Wednesday that he would commit his nation's army--by far the most potent force on Iraq's border--to an armed struggle against Iraqi President Saddam Hussein's regime if the action is sanctioned by the United Nations. Talking to a small group of reporters, Ozal said Turkey and the rest of the world would be better off if Hussein is not allowed to survive the current Persian Gulf crisis with his army intact.

Giving no leeway to criticism from Russia, Greece and Black Sea countries, Turkey on Friday imposed new safety regulations on the Turkish straits, one of the world's busiest international waterways--and one that is also potentially hazardous.

The breakfast rooms and bars of Ankara hotels, so lately vacant in grim winter uncertainty, now buzz with the polyglot crackle of deals-in-the-making. Waiters back from compulsory vacations skitter busily among buyers and sellers rebuilding bridges severed by months of crisis that climaxed in war. Everybody acknowledges that Muslim, secular and democratic Turkey, a four-square U.S. ally, stands proudly among the winners in the Persian Gulf War. What is less clear as Secretary of State James A.

With a twinkle in his eye, Mumtaz Soysal, Turkey's new foreign minister, fenced with reporters questioning his personal impact on the relationship between the Western powers and his own country, NATO's strategic ally on the border with Iraq. How did he define his policy? Pro-Saddam Hussein? Isolationist? Nationalist? Opportunist? Was he a dove? A hawk? "I am not a bird," was all the 65-year-old professor would volunteer. He turned to welcome more guests to the terrace of his official mansion.

Amid the bloodstained shirts of Turkish heroes and the gorgeous campaign tents of the Ottoman Empire, a dusty board in Istanbul's military museum lists what Turks learn are the 16 independent Turkish states of history. For 70 years, that list has stayed nearly static, with the Turkish Republic standing alone as the last proud successor to a Turkic-Mongol line that includes the Huns, Genghis Khan and the Golden Horde.

Turkey's foreign policy has come full circle in the last year. Far from confronting Washington on a range of issues, Ankara is embracing its membership in NATO while working closely with Washington on Middle East issues, including Iran and coordinating Syria policy. What has changed? First and foremost, Ankara has come to appreciate a constant in the value of its foreign policy: Turkey is east if you view it from the perspective of the West, and west if you view it from the perspective of the East.

Giving no leeway to criticism from Russia, Greece and Black Sea countries, Turkey on Friday imposed new safety regulations on the Turkish straits, one of the world's busiest international waterways--and one that is also potentially hazardous.

Amid the bloodstained shirts of Turkish heroes and the gorgeous campaign tents of the Ottoman Empire, a dusty board in Istanbul's military museum lists what Turks learn are the 16 independent Turkish states of history. For 70 years, that list has stayed nearly static, with the Turkish Republic standing alone as the last proud successor to a Turkic-Mongol line that includes the Huns, Genghis Khan and the Golden Horde.

The breakfast rooms and bars of Ankara hotels, so lately vacant in grim winter uncertainty, now buzz with the polyglot crackle of deals-in-the-making. Waiters back from compulsory vacations skitter busily among buyers and sellers rebuilding bridges severed by months of crisis that climaxed in war. Everybody acknowledges that Muslim, secular and democratic Turkey, a four-square U.S. ally, stands proudly among the winners in the Persian Gulf War. What is less clear as Secretary of State James A.

The commander of Turkey's land forces was appointed chief of the general staff Tuesday to replace a general who resigned because he differs with President Turgut Ozal over Persian Gulf policy. Prime Minister Yildirim Akbulut announced the appointment of Gen. Dogan Gures to succeed Gen. Necip Torumtay, who resigned Monday. The appointment was in accordance with military tradition, since Gures was the second-highest-ranking army general after Torumtay. However, it may not solve Ozal's problems.

Turkish President Turgut Ozal said Wednesday that he would commit his nation's army--by far the most potent force on Iraq's border--to an armed struggle against Iraqi President Saddam Hussein's regime if the action is sanctioned by the United Nations. Talking to a small group of reporters, Ozal said Turkey and the rest of the world would be better off if Hussein is not allowed to survive the current Persian Gulf crisis with his army intact.

A pivotal American ally from the opening round of the Persian Gulf crisis, Turkey is settling in for a long siege, exerting tough economic, military and psychological pressure on neighboring Iraq. So far this week, Turkey has welcomed nearly two dozen U.S. F-16 interceptors to an air base in the south that is already crowded with American ordnance, and it has extended by a year the expiring leases on more than a dozen American bases and listening posts on Turkish soil.

What is an Islamist foreign policy, exactly? Is it identifying with Muslims and their suffering, or is it identifying with anti-Western regimes even at the cost of Muslims' best interests? Turkey's foreign policy under the Justice and Development Party, or AKP, government demonstrates that far from protecting Muslims and their interests, it is the promotion of a la carte morals -- bashing the West and supporting anti-Western regimes, even when the latter hurts Muslims. AKP leader and Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan is scheduled to meet today with President Obama in Washington.