29 Mar 2024
Tuesday 24 October 2017 - 12:05
Story Code : 280556

Turkey's turn to Eurasia became main reason for the Turkish-US fallout




Sputnik - The main reason for the crisis in Turkish-US relations is Turkeys turn to Eurasia, Turkish commentators have told Sputnik, explaining that Turkey now believes that by siding with Russia, Iran, Iraq and Syria it can better protect its national interests. While Ankara is not going to cut off its ties with the West, their mutual distrust is growing.




Over the last few months Turkey has not been able tocome toa consensus withthe US onvirtually any ofthe controversial issues, such asthe support that the US provides toSyrian Kurdish self-defense units, the extradition ofFethullah Glen and the visa crisis that erupted betweenthe two countries last week.
Turkey has come toa conclusion that even if it fails toreach an agreement withRussia, Iran, Iraq andSyriaonall ofthe issues, they will still come toa common solution inthe process ofcollaboration, and will be able toprotect their national interests, Soner Polat, political analyst and deputy chairman ofthe Turkish left party Vatan, told Sputnik Turkey.


He added that the Euphrates Shield military operation was a clear demonstration ofsuchmutual collaboration.

Although it was not obvious that Russia and Iran were actively supporting the Euphrates Shield operation, the events show that there was an agreement betweenthe parties. In relation toAleppo, Turkey supported Russia, perhaps, Russia also supported Turkey duringthe Euphrates Shield operation, the political analyst said.

So it is safe tosay that throughnumerous agreementsand various concessions a solution was found; however, forTurkey toachieve the same withthe West is becoming almost impossible.
The visa issue was just a pretext, and the real reason forwhat happened, is that Turkey has turned inthe direction ofEurasia and is no longer considering the West asan arbitrator inresolving regional issues, Polat said.


Anti-American sentiment inTurkey

According toa recent poll, Turkey ranked first amongcountries witha predominance ofanti-American sentiment, asevidenced bythe response of72 percent ofthe respondents.

Similarly, according tothe analyst, 73 percent ofthe voters inthe Justice and Development Party (AKP) stand forbuilding good relations withSyria. Consequently, society wants the same. Of course, the West sees this very well and conducts a geopolitical war inthis direction; visas and everything else were just an excuse. IfTurkeydid not stand onthe way toEurasia, none ofthese issues would grow intosuch a serious crisis.

Turkish-US crisis was impending

The crisis inrelations betweenthe US and Turkey was not something unexpected. It was clear that the growing tensions inthe relations betweenthe two countries would peak. There is nothing unexpected inthis case, according toHasan Unal, a political scientist atthe department ofinternational relations ofAtilim University.
It is clear that such a course ofevents creates a serious danger forthe national security ofTurkey and its integrity. Consequently, Turkeys reaction is natural. Turkey stated that it would not allow the creation ofthe Kurdish corridor back in2015, butthe US did not attach any importance tothat, Unal said, adding that the US persistently carried outthe transfer ofmembers ofthe Party ofthe Democratic Union tothe western part ofthe Euphrates, which later, afteran attempted military coup inTurkey in2016, led tooperation Euphrates Shield.


He also said that if the US does not abandon the implementation ofthe "Greater Kurdistan" project,relations betweenTurkey and the USwould further deteriorate.

Future ofthe current crisis

Turkey's relations withthe United States and the West inthe last 20 years have been acquiring a new format. In any ofthe important issues that make upTurkey's foreign policy, forexample, the Cyprus, Aegean and the Armenian issues, the US and the West oppose Turkey.

Unal believes, "Turkey can make an attempt toclose the military base inIncirlik, and it will be absolutely right. Americans can stop the exchange ofdata and intelligence and can stop selling arms toTurkey, butagain, what is the scale ofarms trade right now is still worth asking.

The analyst also said that onthe other hand, Turkey is taking serious steps tocreate its own defense industry. All ofthat is taking place atthe same time, so that both Turkey and the US have a number ofcountermeasuresinreserve.
In this regard, I predict a further aggravation ofthe crisis inTurkish-American relations, Unal said.


Recently, Ankara and Washington have found themselves amida diplomatic crisis, which has been gradually evolving sincethe attempted July 2016 coup inTurkey. As political analyst and RIA Novosti contributor Gevorg Mirzayan noted, the Turkish leadership still has suspicions that the US could have had a hand inthe July uprising.

Furthermore, Washington is still refusing toextradite Fethullah Gulen, the founder ofthe Gulen movement (FETO) and the alleged mastermind behindthe coup attempt in2016.

Meanwhile, the Russian-Turkish-Iranian Astana format has proven highly efficient. A series ofnegotiations onthe Syrian crisis, which were kicked offin December 2016 inKazakhstan's capital, have resulted inthe implementation ofa prolonged truce inSyria and creation offour de-escalation zones inthe country.

The Astana talks, alongwith Geneva, have become one ofthe major global platforms fornegotiations onthe settlement ofthe conflict.


 

https://theiranproject.com/vdcftxd0vw6dcta.r7iw.html
Your Name
Your Email Address