BY OMER TASPINAR
Now, however, I increasingly believe that the AK Party, too, has decided to jump on the bandwagon of nationalist frustration with the West. After all, this is the most powerful societal undercurrent in Turkey, and Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan needs to win elections. As the events of the last couple of weeks have shown, America and Europe should pay attention to Turkey\\\'s Gaullist inclinations. In the past, Americans and Europeans would often ask whether Turkey had any realistic geopolitical alternatives and complacently reassure themselves that it did not. But today such alternatives are starting to look more realistic to many Turks. The rise of Turkish Gaullism need not come fully at the expense of America and Europe. But Turks are already looking for economic and strategic opportunities in Russia, India, China and, of course, the Middle East and Africa. It is high time for American analysts to stop overplaying the Islamic-secular divide in Turkish foreign policy and pay more attention to what unites both camps: Turkish nationalism.
The real question is whether Ankara will pay a price for challenging the US. The frustration with Turkey in Washington is real and getting stronger. Many argue that Turkey needs to be shaken up. This is why Ankara should prepare itself for a new era in its relations with the US. The concepts of a strategic or model partnership have lost meaning. We\\\'re heading toward a new paradigm of what many in Washington call a \\\'transactional partnership.\\\' The next time Turkish officials come to Washington to lobby against an Armenian \\\'genocide\\\' resolution or for more military or intelligence support against the terrorist PKK, they are likely to face a simple question from their American counterparts: What have you done for us lately? This is why it\\\'s high time for Turkey to solve its Armenian and Kurdish problems without coming to Washington. Only then will Turkey deserve real grandeur and self-confidence in its relations with the West. (End)
(Courtesy TODAY\\\'S ZAMAN)
Now, however, I increasingly believe that the AK Party, too, has decided to jump on the bandwagon of nationalist frustration with the West. After all, this is the most powerful societal undercurrent in Turkey, and Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan needs to win elections. As the events of the last couple of weeks have shown, America and Europe should pay attention to Turkey\\\'s Gaullist inclinations. In the past, Americans and Europeans would often ask whether Turkey had any realistic geopolitical alternatives and complacently reassure themselves that it did not. But today such alternatives are starting to look more realistic to many Turks. The rise of Turkish Gaullism need not come fully at the expense of America and Europe. But Turks are already looking for economic and strategic opportunities in Russia, India, China and, of course, the Middle East and Africa. It is high time for American analysts to stop overplaying the Islamic-secular divide in Turkish foreign policy and pay more attention to what unites both camps: Turkish nationalism.
The real question is whether Ankara will pay a price for challenging the US. The frustration with Turkey in Washington is real and getting stronger. Many argue that Turkey needs to be shaken up. This is why Ankara should prepare itself for a new era in its relations with the US. The concepts of a strategic or model partnership have lost meaning. We\\\'re heading toward a new paradigm of what many in Washington call a \\\'transactional partnership.\\\' The next time Turkish officials come to Washington to lobby against an Armenian \\\'genocide\\\' resolution or for more military or intelligence support against the terrorist PKK, they are likely to face a simple question from their American counterparts: What have you done for us lately? This is why it\\\'s high time for Turkey to solve its Armenian and Kurdish problems without coming to Washington. Only then will Turkey deserve real grandeur and self-confidence in its relations with the West. (End)
(Courtesy TODAY\\\'S ZAMAN)
