Turkey and Greece are so close, so why is Turkey a problem and Greece not a problem.
Hmmm, let's compare and contrast. Greece is to Christian and Turkey is to _____________. Anyone care to fill in the blank.
Chicken
The article was correct about the anti-Americanism in Greece causing a severance of relations. The Greeks knew of terrorism being planned against the bases, but were slow to convey the information because the government didn't want to look like a rat to its own people. So, we moved our bases out and it hurt the Greek economy. Turkey has wrangled with the US over the years for this reason or that...usually wanting more money. But because quality of the products built with American money on bases we use meant spending 2-3 times as much as anticipated, the state department began to look at the increasing anti-Americanism as another Greece. The last straw was not allowing us to use air space. The government in power right now drew its majority through anti-American rhetoric, firing up a lot of Islamic religous groups. Now it thinks it can negotiate a truce and we're gullible enough to do deals with them. We need to be in Turkey, but the price has always been high and will only get higher. We should find a more reasonable partner in the region, and one that wants to curtail the spread of radical Islam.
Greece is to Warsaw Pact and Turkey is to NATO. Oh, I'm sorry, that wasn't the comparison you wanted, eh? Perhaps you've forgotten about Athens' long term dalliance with the Communists
The Turks were probably the best ally we had during the Cold War. They put their butts on the table hosting IRBMs in the early days, and really helped us out in Korea. This latest episode is mostly the result of Al Queda holding a gun to the head of the Turkish government, something that has now greatly diminished.
As a reminder, most of the truck drivers in Iraq (as well as other skilled laborers) are Turkish, so while the current government is somewhat suspect, Yusef Average Turk is putting his neck out every day.
Now the French, that's a whole different story. They've had it in for us ever since the end of WWII, when they descended from the world stage, and the US became a superpower. They've been envious and jealous ever since, and will do anything to get back their (undeserved) pre-war stature. And I mean anything, including undermining us for decades during the Cold War, dumping Indochina in our lap, screaming about US imperialism in the UN while being the last true colonial nation on earth, organizing anti-American Europe...you name it. France is in a league all its own.