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Hurriyet Daily News, Turkey
Nov 17 2013
Turkish Foreign Minister DavutoÄ?lu on trip to US, Russia and Iran
ANKARA - Hürriyet Daily News
Sevil ErkuÅ?
Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet DavutoÄ?lu has set out on a trip to the
United States, which will be followed by visits to Russia and Iran,
with the Syrian crisis high on the agenda.
Following his trip to Washington on Nov. 17-18, DavutoÄ?lu will head to
Russia to attend the Turkey-Russia High Level Strategic Cooperation
Council's meeting on Nov. 21-22, with a delegation headed by Prime
Minister Recep Tayyip ErdoÄ?an.
He will pay a visit to Iran for another meeting of the Economic
Cooperation Organization, set for Nov. 26-27.
During his visit to the U.S., DavutoÄ?lu aims to make Turkey's
positions on a number of issues clearer in the eyes of different
decision makers in Washington through separate meetings, with the
Syrian crisis top of the agenda.
In his first official visit to Washington after last year's U.S.
presidential elections, he will meet his U.S. counterpart John Kerry
and have a meeting with Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel.
The minister will also make contacts in the U.S. Congress and hold
talks with representatives and opinion leaders of a number of NGOs in
Washington.
The U.S. has made it clear that it has no intention of intervening
militarily into Syria, and Turkey, one of the most vocal proponents of
action to oust Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, is uneasy at being
left to confront the consequences of conflict in neighboring Syria.
Turkey has been accused of turning a blind eye to extremist Islamic
militants streamed through the country en route to fight alongside
rebels.
U.S. officials say Ankara and Washington agree on the larger strategy
for Syria, but sometimes differ in tactics.
DavutoÄ?lu's visit to Washington comes on the heels of recent
engagement of the U.S. with Iran, which is also expected to be part of
the talks. Ankara supports a diplomatic settlement to the dispute over
Iran's nuclear program and says it will continue to advocate this
initiative.
Missiles also on agenda
Turkey's much-debated choice to acquire a Chinese long-range
air-defense system is also expected to be raised in Washington. Ankara
announced that it would start contract talks with the FD-2000
missile-defense system from China Precision Machinery Import-Export
Corporation (CPMIEC) over rival systems from U.S. and European firms.
However, the Chinese firm is under U.S. sanctions for violations of
Nonproliferation Act Sanctions (INKSNA).
After U.S. officials voiced concerns over the selection of the Chinese
company, Turkey said it was open to new proposals from the U.S. and
European companies, which recently contacted Turkish defense
authorities to renew their proposals.
DavutoÄ?lu's visit also comes after Turkish officials were recently
irked by a series of recent articles in the U.S. media criticizing the
policies of Hakan Fidan, the chief of Turkish intelligence. Taking
account of the timing of Ankara's decision for a Chinese firm, the
Turkish Foreign Ministry has conveyed its unease to U.S. officials
over those articles and stressed that they would not only harm
bilateral interests, but also U.S. interests.
The U.S. has long been urging normalization in relations between
Turkey and Israel, after both countries launched compensation talks on
the Mavi Marmara incident of 2010. There has been some recent progress
in compensation talks, and negotiations could be finalized in the near
future, sources told the Hürriyet Daily News.
Turkey also wants to lend impetus to the Minsk talks for a settlement
in the Nagorno-Karabakh dispute, which would also pave the way for
implementation of the protocols between Turkey and Armenia that aim to
normalize relations. Getting a positive message from the Azerbaijani
side for progress in the Minsk process, Minister DavutoÄ?lu is expected
to urge the U.S. to push the negotiations over Nagorno-Karabakh.
As Turkey is making efforts to fine-tune relations between Ankara and
Baghdad, the issue of Turkey's energy deals with the Iraqi Kurdistan
Regional Government (KRG) are also set to be on the agenda. A possible
settlement in Cyprus will be discussed as well, with Turkish and Greek
Cypriots about to resume negotiations.
`Turkey and the US do not have the luxury of remaining apart from each other'
Meanwhile, on the occasion of his trip the U.S., DavutoÄ?lu has written
an article for Foreign Policy magazine, in which he underlined the
vital relationship between the two countries. `In today's ever more
complex and fluid international environment - with Syria in crisis and
much of the Middle East in flux - the U.S.-Turkish relationship
remains vital for a sustainable regional and global order,' he wrote.
`Alignment with the West during times of crisis, such as the Arab
Spring, is testament to how deeply such shared values are embedded in
the genesis of our foreign policy. On that ground, the United States
and Turkey do not have the luxury of remaining aloof or apart from
each other; our joint work has proven indispensable to regional
security and stability,' he added.
`Despite our many and early warnings about the radicalization of the
Syrian opposition, the international community has so far failed to
deliver a just and decisive settlement. Yet, even counting the
attempts of extremist groups to step into the political void, there is
no greater threat to Syria and its people than al-Assad and his
anachronistic rule,' DavutoÄ?lu also wrote in the article.
November/17/2013
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/turkish-foreign-minister-davutoglu-on-trip-to-us-russia-and-iran.aspx?pageID=238&nID=58071&NewsCatID=338
From: A. Papazian
Nov 17 2013
Turkish Foreign Minister DavutoÄ?lu on trip to US, Russia and Iran
ANKARA - Hürriyet Daily News
Sevil ErkuÅ?
Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet DavutoÄ?lu has set out on a trip to the
United States, which will be followed by visits to Russia and Iran,
with the Syrian crisis high on the agenda.
Following his trip to Washington on Nov. 17-18, DavutoÄ?lu will head to
Russia to attend the Turkey-Russia High Level Strategic Cooperation
Council's meeting on Nov. 21-22, with a delegation headed by Prime
Minister Recep Tayyip ErdoÄ?an.
He will pay a visit to Iran for another meeting of the Economic
Cooperation Organization, set for Nov. 26-27.
During his visit to the U.S., DavutoÄ?lu aims to make Turkey's
positions on a number of issues clearer in the eyes of different
decision makers in Washington through separate meetings, with the
Syrian crisis top of the agenda.
In his first official visit to Washington after last year's U.S.
presidential elections, he will meet his U.S. counterpart John Kerry
and have a meeting with Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel.
The minister will also make contacts in the U.S. Congress and hold
talks with representatives and opinion leaders of a number of NGOs in
Washington.
The U.S. has made it clear that it has no intention of intervening
militarily into Syria, and Turkey, one of the most vocal proponents of
action to oust Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, is uneasy at being
left to confront the consequences of conflict in neighboring Syria.
Turkey has been accused of turning a blind eye to extremist Islamic
militants streamed through the country en route to fight alongside
rebels.
U.S. officials say Ankara and Washington agree on the larger strategy
for Syria, but sometimes differ in tactics.
DavutoÄ?lu's visit to Washington comes on the heels of recent
engagement of the U.S. with Iran, which is also expected to be part of
the talks. Ankara supports a diplomatic settlement to the dispute over
Iran's nuclear program and says it will continue to advocate this
initiative.
Missiles also on agenda
Turkey's much-debated choice to acquire a Chinese long-range
air-defense system is also expected to be raised in Washington. Ankara
announced that it would start contract talks with the FD-2000
missile-defense system from China Precision Machinery Import-Export
Corporation (CPMIEC) over rival systems from U.S. and European firms.
However, the Chinese firm is under U.S. sanctions for violations of
Nonproliferation Act Sanctions (INKSNA).
After U.S. officials voiced concerns over the selection of the Chinese
company, Turkey said it was open to new proposals from the U.S. and
European companies, which recently contacted Turkish defense
authorities to renew their proposals.
DavutoÄ?lu's visit also comes after Turkish officials were recently
irked by a series of recent articles in the U.S. media criticizing the
policies of Hakan Fidan, the chief of Turkish intelligence. Taking
account of the timing of Ankara's decision for a Chinese firm, the
Turkish Foreign Ministry has conveyed its unease to U.S. officials
over those articles and stressed that they would not only harm
bilateral interests, but also U.S. interests.
The U.S. has long been urging normalization in relations between
Turkey and Israel, after both countries launched compensation talks on
the Mavi Marmara incident of 2010. There has been some recent progress
in compensation talks, and negotiations could be finalized in the near
future, sources told the Hürriyet Daily News.
Turkey also wants to lend impetus to the Minsk talks for a settlement
in the Nagorno-Karabakh dispute, which would also pave the way for
implementation of the protocols between Turkey and Armenia that aim to
normalize relations. Getting a positive message from the Azerbaijani
side for progress in the Minsk process, Minister DavutoÄ?lu is expected
to urge the U.S. to push the negotiations over Nagorno-Karabakh.
As Turkey is making efforts to fine-tune relations between Ankara and
Baghdad, the issue of Turkey's energy deals with the Iraqi Kurdistan
Regional Government (KRG) are also set to be on the agenda. A possible
settlement in Cyprus will be discussed as well, with Turkish and Greek
Cypriots about to resume negotiations.
`Turkey and the US do not have the luxury of remaining apart from each other'
Meanwhile, on the occasion of his trip the U.S., DavutoÄ?lu has written
an article for Foreign Policy magazine, in which he underlined the
vital relationship between the two countries. `In today's ever more
complex and fluid international environment - with Syria in crisis and
much of the Middle East in flux - the U.S.-Turkish relationship
remains vital for a sustainable regional and global order,' he wrote.
`Alignment with the West during times of crisis, such as the Arab
Spring, is testament to how deeply such shared values are embedded in
the genesis of our foreign policy. On that ground, the United States
and Turkey do not have the luxury of remaining aloof or apart from
each other; our joint work has proven indispensable to regional
security and stability,' he added.
`Despite our many and early warnings about the radicalization of the
Syrian opposition, the international community has so far failed to
deliver a just and decisive settlement. Yet, even counting the
attempts of extremist groups to step into the political void, there is
no greater threat to Syria and its people than al-Assad and his
anachronistic rule,' DavutoÄ?lu also wrote in the article.
November/17/2013
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/turkish-foreign-minister-davutoglu-on-trip-to-us-russia-and-iran.aspx?pageID=238&nID=58071&NewsCatID=338
From: A. Papazian