Abstract
With the main focus of Barack H. Obama’s first foreign tour on multinational summitry (including the G20 summit in London and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization [NATO] meeting in Strasbourg), capping his itinerary with a visit to Turkey seemed incongruous. After affirming in his April speech before Turkey’s parliament, known as the Grand National Assembly, that he had chosen Turkey “to send a message to the world” and then enumerating key global issues, Obama remarked, “No one nation can confront these challenges alone, and all nations have a stake in overcoming them We are stronger when we act together.”1 Yet this speech did not serve merely to differentiate Obama’s approach from the preceding administration’s reputation for unilateralism and “bring-it-on” confrontationalism. Although this renown was largely earned by U.S.-led interventions in Afghanistan and Iraq, Obama could have demonstrated his opposing policy sensibility anywhere other than in a Muslim-majority country.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
Notes
Mark R. Parris, “Common Values and Common Interests? The Bush Legacy in US-Turkish Relations,” Insight Turkey 10, no. 4 (2008): 13.
Pew Global Attitudes Project, Most Muslim Publics Not So Easily Moved: Confidence in Obama Lifts U.S. Image around the World, July 23, 2009, pp. 1–2.
Fusun Turkmen, “Turkish-American Relations: A Challenging Transition,” Turkish Studies 10, no. 1 (2009): 122.
Jim Bodgener, “Armenian Dead Haunt Turkey’s Relations with the US: A Congressional Resolution Striking at Deepseated National Sentiments,” Financial Times, February 23, 1990, p. 3.
Charles P. Kindleberger, “Dominance and Leadership in the International Economy: Exploitation, Public Goods, and Free Rides,” International Studies Quarterly 25, no. 2 (1981): 248.
U.S. Census Bureau, Statistical Abstract of the United States: 1994 (Washington, DC: GPO, 1994), 814.
Kenneth N. Waltz, Theory of International Politics (New York: Random House, 1979), 168–169.
Joseph C. Satterthwaite, “The Truman Doctrine: Turkey,” Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science 401, America and the Middle East (1972): 79.
Barton J. Bernstein, “The Cuban Missile Crisis: Trading the Jupiters in Turkey?” Political Science Quarterly 95, no. 1 (1980): 99.
Nur Bilge Criss, “A Short History of Anti-Americanism and Terrorism: The Turkish Case,” Journal of American History 89, no. 2 (2002): 475.
Charlotte Wolf, Garrison Community: A Study of an Overseas American Military Colony (Westport, CT: Greenwood Publishing Corporation, 1969), 57n9.
Ahmet Davutoglu, “Turkey’s Zero-Problems Foreign Policy,” Foreign Policy, May 20, 2010, http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2010/05/20/turkeys_zero_problems_foreign_policy. (Accessed on February 16, 2011).
U.S. Census Bureau, Statistical Abstract of the United States: 1978 (Washington, DC: GPO, 1978), 871–873 (for 1975 figures); Statistical Abstract of the United States: 1979 (Washington, DC: GPO, 1979), 857–859.
Amy E. Schwartz, “Atta Turk: Ozal Looks West,” New Republic (Washington, DC), April 15, 1991, pp. 19–21.
Morton Abramowitz, “The Turkish Portfolio,” American Interest 4, no. 3 (2009): 64.
Kenneth Katzman, “Iraq: Oil-for-Food Program, International Sanctions, and Illicit Trade,” Congressional Research Service, February 28, 2003, pp. 1–2, 14.
Paul A. Williams, “Turkey’s H2O Diplomacy in the Middle East,” Security Dialogue 32, no. 1 (2001): 28–32.
Ziya Onis and Suhnaz Yilmaz, “Between Europeanization and Euro-Asianism: Foreign Policy Activism in Turkey during the JDP Era,” Turkish Studies 10, no. 1 (2009): 1.
U.S. Census Bureau, Statistical Abstract of the United States: 1990 (Washington, DC: GPO, 1990), 806–807.
U.S. Census Bureau, Statistical Abstract of the United States: 1994, 823– 826 (for 1992 figures).
U.S. Census Bureau, Statistical Abstract of the United States: 2001 (Washington, DC: GPO, 2001), 802–805 (for 2000 figures).
Chris Morris, “US Offers Turkey 1bn in Quake Aid,” Guardian (UK), November 16, 1999.
International Monetary Fund, “Turkey: Financial Position in the Fund as of December 31” (2000), http://www.imf.org/external/np/fin/tad/exfin2.aspx?memberkey1=980&date1Key=2 000–12-31. (Accessed on February 16, 2011).
Jan H. Kalicki, “U.S. Policy in the Caspian: Pipelines, Partnership and Prosperity,” Middle East Policy 6, no. 2 (1998): 145–149.
Kenneth Katzman, “Iran Sanctions,” Congressional Research Service, June 23, 2010, http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/mideast/RS20871.pdf. (Accessed on July 15, 2010).
Paul A. Williams and Ali Tekin, “The Iraq War, Turkey, and Renewed Caspian Energy Prospects,” Middle East Journal 62, no. 3 (2008): 389–393.
Thomas Mattair, “The United States and Iran: Diplomacy, Sanctions and War,” Middle East Policy 17, no. 2 (2010): 51.
Chris Nuttall, “Turkish Deals with Iran Risk US Rift,” Guardian (UK), August 12, 1996.
Juliet Eilperin and Stephen Mufson, “Hastert Withdraws ‘Genocide’ Resolution; Clinton Plea, Ties with Turkey Cited,” Washington Post, October 20, 2000, p. A04.
Ziya Onis and Suhnaz Yilmaz, “The Turkey-EU-US Triangle in Perspective: Transformation or Continuity?” Middle East Journal 59, no. 2 (2005): 271–273.
Brian Kenety, “Politics: EU Reference to ‘Genocide’ Angers Turkey,” Inter Press Service, November 16, 2000.
Cameron S. Brown, “Turkey in the Gulf Wars of 1991 and 2003,” Turkish Studies 8, no. 1 (2007): 98–100.
George Parker and Joshua Chaffin, “US Presses Case for Turkey’s Accession to EU,” Financial Times, June 27, 2004.
George Parker and Judy Dempsey, “EU Tells US to Stay out of Turkey’s EU Bid,” Financial Times, April 21, 2003.
Demetri Sevastopulo and Vincent Boland, “US Urges Turkey to Limit Iraq Incursion,” Financial Times, February 28, 2008. The United States’ favorability rating rose from 9 percent in 2007 to 12 percent in 2008, according to Pew Global Attitudes Project 2009, p. 1.
Deb Riechmann, “Bush Meets Turkish Leaders as They Grapple with Hostage Crisis,” Associated Press, June 27, 2004.
U.S. State Department, “Remarks by President Obama at Student Roundtable in Turkey—Obama Committed to Rebuilding U.S. Relations with Muslim World,” State Department Press Releases and Documents, April 7, 2009.
David Charter, “Leave Turkey’s Bid to Join EU to Us, Sarkozy Warns Obama,” Times (London), April 6, 2009.
David O’Byrne, “Baku Snubs US-Turkey Summit,” International Gas Report, April 13, 2009.
Marc Champion, “Turkey, Armenia Break Ice,” Wall Street Journal Europe, April 24, 2009, p. 1.
O’Bryne, “Baku Snubs”; Nadia Rodova, “Russian, Azeri Presidents Hope to Sign Azeri Gas Export Deal,” Platts Commodity News, April 27, 2009.
Fulya Ozerkan, “Turkey Strikes Key Gas Deals with Azerbaijan,” Hurriyet Daily News (Turkey), June 7, 2010, http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/n.php?n=turkey-strikes-key-gas-deals-with-azerbaijan-2010-06-07. (Accessed on June 7, 2010).
Daniel Dombey and William Wallis, “US Struggles to Prevent Quartet Rift over Hamas,” Financial Times, February 22, 2006, p. 10.
Margaret Coker and Jay Solomon, “Israel Discusses Cease-Fire Amid New Attacks on Hamas,” Wall Street Journal, January 2, 2009, p. A1.
Robert Tait, “International Reaction: Erdogan Risks Mediator Role,” Guardian (UK), January 31, 2009.
Julian Borger, “Turkey Confirms It Barred Israel from Military Exercise Because of Gaza War,” Guardian Unlimited (UK), October 13, 2009.
Nicholas Birch and Sarah Childress, “Turkey Says It Won’t Arrest Sudan President during Visit,” Wall Street Journal Europe, November 6, 2009, p. 10.
Marc Champion, “Erdogan Calls Israel ‘Threat’ to Peace; Turkish Premier’s Remarks Further Strain Countries’ Alliance as Analysts Ponder Nation’s Foreign-Policy Leanings,” Wall Street Journal, April 8, 2010.
Gerald F. Seib, “U.S. Plays Therapist with Turkey, Israel,” Wall Street Journal, June 4, 2010.
Sinan Ulgen, “Preventing the Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction: What Role for Turkey?” Discussion Paper Series—2010/2 (Edam: Centre for Economics and Foreign Policy Studies, 2010), 12–15.
George Percovich, “Sanctions on Iran—The Least Bad Option,” Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, June 28, 2010, http://carnegieendowment.org/publications/index. cfm?fa=view&id=41066.
(Accessed on February 16, 2011); Marc Champion, “World News: Turkey Takes Iran to Task over Delay in Nuclear Talks,” Wall Street Journal, June 30, 2010, p. A13.
Daniel Dombey, Alex Barker, and Najmeh Bozorgmehr, “US Blames Europe as Turkey Opposes Sanctions,” Financial Times, June 9, 2010.
Greg Bruno, “The Lengthening List of Iran Sanctions, Council on Foreign Relations: Backgrounder,” July 28, 2010, http://www.cfr.org/publication/20258/lengthening_list_of_iran_sanctions.html. (Accessed on February 16, 2011).
Nur Bilge Criss, “Dismantling Turkey: The Will of the People?” Turkish Studies 11, no. 1 (2010): 47.
Elliot Abrams, “A Turkey of a Policy: Obama Makes the Middle East an Even More Dangerous Place,” Weekly Standard (USA), June 21, 2010, http://weeklystandard.com/print/articles/turkey-policy. (Accessed on February 16, 2011).
Andrew C. McCarthy, “Turkey Turns,” National Review, July 5, 2010, pp. 32–36.
Michael Rubin, “Turkey, from Ally to Enemy,” Commentary, July-August 2010, pp. 81–86.
Delphine Strauss and David Gardner, “The Sentinel Swivels,” Financial Times Asia Edition, July 21, 2010, p. 1.
Editor information
Copyright information
© 2011 Shahram Akbarzadeh
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Williams, P.A. (2011). Turkey: A Neglected Partner. In: Akbarzadeh, S. (eds) America’s Challenges in the Greater Middle East. Palgrave Macmillan, New York. https://doi.org/10.1057/9780230119598_13
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/9780230119598_13
Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, New York
Print ISBN: 978-1-349-29469-5
Online ISBN: 978-0-230-11959-8
eBook Packages: Palgrave Political & Intern. Studies CollectionPolitical Science and International Studies (R0)