Posted on 03/29/2005 6:46:00 PM PST by pkpjamestown
I have just returned from a weeklong visit to the United States. I spoke with many people. The situation is very bad. Anti-Turkish sentiment in the United States is very strong. The rejection of US troop deployment two years ago has once again started to create trouble.
Mehmet Ali BIRAND I am sure you heard about the things I will write below from various commentators with varying opinions. It was Sami Kohen who reported on the matter most recently.
Well, this time, you will hear it from me.
The situation is now bad. It's beyond that.
We are facing an anti-Turkish sentiment in the United States that is getting worse every day.
The ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) is aware of this. Foreign Ministry officials also note it in their reports, as do our officials in Washington.
Still, either Ankara does not know how serious the situation is or it is not taking it seriously enough.
I'm afraid this is the most dangerous part of the problem: Not taking the developments seriously enough.
If I am not mistaken, the attitude of the government is: “Yes, there is a problem, but all these can be resolved through mutual goodwill. There is no crisis.”
Yes, there is no crisis yet. However, if we don't take immediate steps to remedy the situation and make some constructive gestures, the situation will turn into an incredibly serious crisis.
Americans are not as impatient as we are. Tension slowly increases and one day the rope will break.
The rejection of the bill that would have allowed a U.S. troop deployment in Turkey two years ago is now making itself felt among those groups who are influential in crafting policies in Washington. We may think their anger is belated, but there is a fact we must note. There is something very disturbing going on.
In the 1980s, former Greek Prime Minister Andreas Papandreou had based his policies on anti-Americanism. He never minced his words and would always blast the United States because the people liked it. After a while Washington reacted, and Papandreou, together with Greece, paid a very high price.
We should not dismiss U.S. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and Deputy Secretary of Defense Paul Wolfowitz citing the bill's rejection, saying: “If Turkey had allowed our troops in, the situation in Iraq would have been far better today and our losses would have been less.”
Such statements have an influence on ordinary people. Academics start talking about them at universities and then think tanks cite them in reports. And then commentators start to write about them as established facts.
One day we will wake up and realize the whole world believes we are the ones responsible for the way things turned out in Iraq.
We should take the matter seriously and do something:
First of all, the matter should be analyzed in detail and the government should admit things are headed towards a crisis. They should decide to do something to turn things around.
We may feel better by criticizing President George W. Bush and his entourage, but this won't resolve our problem. In other words, this cancer, which is giving signs of spreading to other parts of the body, cannot be treated by removing the cancerous ulcer.
Ankara should do everything in its power to open a dialogue with Washington. This dialogue will not work if it is held at a diplomatic level. Foreign Minister Abdullah Gül and Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoðan should be involved. If not, it will be too late.
I am personally aware that Turkey has no intention of following an anti-U.S. policy. The top media executives know that the AKP government does not want to damage bilateral relations with the White House.
However, being aware of this doesn't solve the problem.
The fact is our counterparts are making assessments based on misperceptions, and they are getting angrier by the day.
The cancer is spreading.
The AKP government should take this seriously.
If it doesn't and waits for the prime minister to get involved, the day will come when all of us will be forced to pay the price.
Turkey, which will soon start its European Union accession negotiations and which has a very fragile economy, should not fall into the trap of anti-Americanism.
None of us can afford such clumsiness.
bttt
They couldn't find Mexico either.
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Don't kid yourself. Turkey ranks right there with Uganda in the American psyche.
Isn't Turkey just to the Northwest of Kurdistan?
;-)
No, but KY would.
Who cares? The American psyche changes on a weekly basis. Enemies become friends, friends become enemies over night. Saudi Arabia and those Wahhabist freaks were Uncle Sam's best friends until just a few years ago.
You care. That's why you take the time to clog this site with your lies about turkey.
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