Post by Moses on May 28, 2005 0:21:29 GMT -5
'Win the neocons'
Friday, May 27, 2005
'Turkey has had some traditional friends who have been disturbed by things they have seen over the last two years,' says the outgoing US ambassador
YUSUF KANLI AND ELIF UNAL ARSLAN
ANKARA - Turkish Daily News
Outgoing U.S. Ambassador Eric Edelman has said those in Turkey who advocate a strong Turkish-U.S. relationship should engage in dialogue with the neoconservatives in order to win over the influential U.S. group of politicians and thinkers, who have become increasingly critical of Ankara's policies towards Washington.
Some among the neocons have suggested that the strategic partnership between the two countries was over and that both sides had passed the point of recovery in their battered ties. Turkish-U.S. relations have suffered since March 2003, when Turkey refused to allow deployment of U.S. troops on its soil to help open a northern front on Iraq.
"A lot of people in the United States, in the attentive public that follows foreign affairs, articulated the strategic importance of Turkey. By and large, those people have been neoconservatives," Edelman told the Turkish Daily News in an exclusive interview. He is expected to be appointed undersecretary of defense for policy in Washington once the Senate confirms his nomination for the post by President George Bush.
Edelman dismissed farfetched neoconservative suggestions but said, "I think what is important to take from all this is that Turkey has had some traditional friends who have been disturbed by things they have seen over the last two years."
"In terms of managing the relationship, it would be good for people in Turkey who are concerned about the U.S.-Turkish relationship and want it to be strong to be speaking to those segments that have been traditionally supportive of Turkey, in order to try to overcome some of these differences and bridge some of these gaps that have emerged," he added.
Eric Edelman is expected to be appointed Undersecretary of Defense, replacing Douglas Feith
Friday, May 27, 2005
'Turkey has had some traditional friends who have been disturbed by things they have seen over the last two years,' says the outgoing US ambassador
YUSUF KANLI AND ELIF UNAL ARSLAN
ANKARA - Turkish Daily News
Outgoing U.S. Ambassador Eric Edelman has said those in Turkey who advocate a strong Turkish-U.S. relationship should engage in dialogue with the neoconservatives in order to win over the influential U.S. group of politicians and thinkers, who have become increasingly critical of Ankara's policies towards Washington.
Some among the neocons have suggested that the strategic partnership between the two countries was over and that both sides had passed the point of recovery in their battered ties. Turkish-U.S. relations have suffered since March 2003, when Turkey refused to allow deployment of U.S. troops on its soil to help open a northern front on Iraq.
"A lot of people in the United States, in the attentive public that follows foreign affairs, articulated the strategic importance of Turkey. By and large, those people have been neoconservatives," Edelman told the Turkish Daily News in an exclusive interview. He is expected to be appointed undersecretary of defense for policy in Washington once the Senate confirms his nomination for the post by President George Bush.
Edelman dismissed farfetched neoconservative suggestions but said, "I think what is important to take from all this is that Turkey has had some traditional friends who have been disturbed by things they have seen over the last two years."
"In terms of managing the relationship, it would be good for people in Turkey who are concerned about the U.S.-Turkish relationship and want it to be strong to be speaking to those segments that have been traditionally supportive of Turkey, in order to try to overcome some of these differences and bridge some of these gaps that have emerged," he added.
Eric Edelman is expected to be appointed Undersecretary of Defense, replacing Douglas Feith