TURKISH  LYRICAL HISTORY HELPS ANGLO-AMERICAN DIPLOMACY

 

At NATO’s Istanbul Summit on 28-29 June, the “Lyrical Performance of History”, the potpourri of Turkish music and art over the centuries, helped the refined Anglo-American diplomacy to emerge from the Iraq quagmire by presenting to top world leaders an excellent Islamic lyrical history blended with Christian and Jewish religious music of Istanbul’s relevant minorities. It was a big boost to the Americans’ Greater Middle East project in that it was a tangible example of the harmony of religions at a time when terrorist efforts, revolving around Al Qaeda, were working hard in creating the clash of religions through unprecedented violence in especially Iraq, taking advantage of the U.S.-led coalition’s enormous mistakes in that country during the last 500 days or so. For the analysis of this intriguing diplomatic story from Turkey’s angle please read the article below.

 Former Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit used to see a “British finger” behind the Bush Administration’s erroneous policies on Cyprus and Iraq, as both these countries were former British colonies taken over from the Ottoman Empire with the notorious British practice to systematically eradicate the Turkish influence and relics in both countries. Indeed, there were indications or at least claims that Lord Hannon was the brain behind the First Annan Plan for Cyprus with all its “terrible plots and pitfalls designed to make Cyprus a Greek island within a decade or so,” as President Denktas has been stating. Also, the western claims that only 2-3% of Iraq’s population is Turkomen are based on the British colonialists’ legerdemains of statistics as well as their efforts to make Kurds out of the Turks after their takeover of Iraq in 1920. The CIA’s “Country Profile” puts the Turkoman existence in Iraq at 5% and even that tiny rate includes Assyrians and other smaller minorities. It is noteworthy that after the insignificant Turkoman existence in the current interim government of Iraq and in its predecessor with only one trifling seat in the ruling power (the Turkoman Minister in the present Iraqi Government will deal with Iraq’s nonexistent science and technology), the Turkoman presence on today’s Board to prepare for the election at the end of this year has risen to 7%. It was a significant increase as it more than doubled the initial rates though it is still grossly untrue and unjust as the eventual census taking, a nightmare for the Anglo-Americans in their future plans for Iraq, will indicate towards the end of this year, unless they invent another excuse to avoid holding it.

Refined diplomacy is at work in order to get rid of insurmountable problems    

The extent of Blair’s uncontested influence on Bush`s diplomacy is still unknown given the fact that the two leaders were far from seeing eye to eye Iraq`s developments and relevant policies, but it was easier to see traces of traditional British diplomacy in saving the “Coalition” from the Iraq quagmire last week by transferring sovereignty to a handpicked interim Iraqi government on Monday (28^th), two days early. It coincided with, or was rather geared to the first day of the Istanbul summit, and got the NATO community somewhat involved in the Iraq affair despite strong French and German opposition also silently shared by Turkey.

In spite of the basic clash of interest between Turkey and the Anglo-Americans in the Cyprus and Iraq events, joint efforts are eliminating some of these barriers with centuries-old Turkish and British diplomatic experience and skill. These efforts for creating good images of one another in their respective public opinions go as far as using an-eight-year old child in this diplomatic game.

On the eve of PM Blair’s sudden official visit to Turkey last month, Turkish diplomacy in Ankara was scratching its head hard to please the all-important United Kingdom without giving concessions on Turkey’s basic policies of Cyprus, Iraq and other flash issues. It was delighted to know that it could be done very effectively by fulfilling a Turkish court ruling about handing over an 8-year old boy, Cihan Serce, to his British mother in England by putting an end to the Turkish police’s help to the boy’s father in hiding the child in the Antalya-Isparta area. With massive media publicity on both sides, especially in the UK, the necessary pleasant atmosphere was created in the public opinions of both countries about mutual relations.

Prior to this surprisingly successful development of a relatively tiny affair which could not be solved for four years despite the FCO’s (Foreign and Commonwealth Office’s) top level approaches to Ankara, the MFA (Ministry of Foreign Affairs) was underlining a top level British diplomat’s support of Turkey on the Cyprus problem which silently helped to turn Lord Hannon’s first Annan Plan into its fourth (“fifth” for some people) Annan plan. The result was, in the eyes of most Turks, as drastic as the precipice between the Treaties of Sevres and Lausanne in the twenties. Another, and even more drastic result was the Greek Cypriot rejection of the latest version of the Annan plan with 76% majority, as against 65% Turkish Cypriot acceptance. Instrumental in this unbelievable historic achievement was a British diplomat who had been involved in Turkey and the Turkish Cypriots for the last four decades from the lowest attaché level in 1963-64 to ambassadorial level until he became Kofi Annan’s top colleague since he took over the management of the world organisation. During the hard bargaining, indeed strife and struggle, to transform the First Annan plan into its fourth or fifth version, Turkish diplomats in the United Nations were delighted to have a more understanding ear in Ambassador Prendagast’s person in the UN management instead of De Soto’s work which Denktas hated and publicly opposed to the end. Where Prendagast’s power and influence proved exhausted in solving the problem for Turkey, British diplomacy in Ankara through Ambassador Westmacott with his previous links with the British Royal Family and politics as well as the FCO seem to have come into operation. This belief in Ankara made Ambassador Westmacott a number one frequenter of the Prime Minister’s and Foreign Minister’s offices in the Ankara Diplomatic Corps, while the American ambassador kept on annoying the Turkish public with advice of not to expect any American action against the PKK in Iraq.

Turkish accession is closer than ever before

In addition the NATO summit was held in Istanbul last week with considerable success despite its foregone conclusion that nothing much would be done about Anglo-American efforts to have NATO forces in Iraq and Afghanistan. NATO will send 3500 more troops to the latter, but not even that to Iraq, leaving the Coalition forces in the lurch. The most Turkey and the Franco-German side would accept about Iraq was to train the Iraqi security forces. Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul said that there was no question of shipping Turkish military troops or instructors to Iraq for that purpose, that Turkey could train the Iraqi police, rather than the army and that the details of this military cooperation with the new Iraq is still unclear.

One clear outcome of the Istanbul summit was the confirmation of Turkey’s accession to the EU as all the factions of the alliance outspokenly called for it. President Bush started to speak about it even before coming to Turkey. He made contacts with the EU countries and management in Brussels on his way to Ankara and Istanbul and gave outright and repeated support to the Turkish accession. PM Blair and Chancellor Schroeder repeated their support, the latter saying that they would keep their promise to Turkey about its 41 years of efforts to join the European integration. PM Karamanlis confirmed Greece’s determination not to be in the way. One interesting development concerned President Chirac’s statement about it. The Turkish media gave top prominence to the French leader’s criticism of President Bush that he was interfering in European affairs by repeatedly supporting the Turkish accession. As expected the evil in the Turkish media, the Disinformation Mechanism, jumped at the opportunity to distort the whole thing against France.

The MNP (Nationalist Action Party) guided nationalist Internet media reported on Monday (28^th):

“CHIRAC GETS TOUGH WITH BUSH

“At his address to the NATO summit in Istanbul, the French President Jacques Chirac criticised the U.S. President George Bush for his efforts to back Turkey’s EU accession. On Sunday President Bush said in an express support of Turkey’s EU accession, ‘I must remind the beautiful people of this country that the EU should give a date to you for your accession to the EU.’

“Chirac said of Bush at his press conference at the Summit, ‘Not only did he go too far, but has also dared enter an area that is none of his concern.’

“Chirac, who is one of the EU leaders that has staged the strongest objection to Turkey’s EU membership, described Bush’s words of the Turkish accession, ‘It is like my speaking of the United States about how it should regulate its relations with Mexico.’”

A reader familiar with the American disinformation activities in Turkey (who happens to be the writer of this article) promptly sent the following e-mail to the reporters:

“You say you are nationalists, but become a tool of the American disinformation. You reflect Chirac’s words with extractions and distortions. At the same statement Chirac says that Turkey’s EU accession is an inevitable reality and that IT HAS ENTERED A PATH OF NO RETURN. Probably you too acted this way as a victim of the Disinformation Mechanism. I expect you will correct your mistake. Regards. Vedat Uras.”

The mistake was corrected by the circulation of this e-mail to the same circles.

The noteworthy point about this affair was that not even PM Tayyip Erdogan was aware of these distortions and remarked in an interview immediately after the Summit that President Chirac’s criticism of President Bush was a bit blunt. He seemed unaware of the distortions to President Chirac’s statement about Turkey’s accession, though, along with the Dutch Prime Minister’s statement in his capacity as the new chief of the EU until the end of the year, it was the biggest assurance to the majority of the Turkish people who unanimously support the accession.

In short, Turkey’s EU membership received resounding support at the summit. The only hitch was the official Austrian rebuttal to a Turkish press claim that the Austrian Prime Minister had withdrawn his objection to the Turkish accession. No one, however, paid much attention to this rebuttal with the belief that under the existing conditions it is far beyond this small European country’s capability to obstruct the Turkish accession.

The most reliable barometer of Turkey’s EU accession was the Istanbul Stock Exchange which began to soar last week without waiting for the EU Commission’s progress report on 6 October or the Copenhagen Summit’s final resolution in December about the commencement of the talks for the Turkish accession. It is to be hoped that there will be nothing to obstruct this course of events in the second half of the year. uras@ada.net.tr – July 3^rd, 2004