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ARE AMBASSADORS PROPAGANDA OFFICIALS FOR THE RULING PARTY?
Today's Zaman, Turkey
Jan 20 2014
ALİ H. ASLAN
[email protected]
After Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan ordered Turkish ambassadors
to explain to foreign diplomats the recent graft and bribery scandal
from a conspiracy-oriented and partisan perspective, the Turkish
ambassador to Washington will certainly have the hardest time complying
with this instruction.
Indeed, he will have American officials who are uneasy with the Turkish
government implying the involvement of the US in a so-called "coup"
attempt against it. And if the ambassador blames the Hizmet movement,
which is the most active and influential Turkish civil society movement
in the US, this will amount to the Turkish government cutting off
its own nose. Turks don't need the Armenian lobby to defame Turkey;
the Turkish Republic is already undermining the Turkish lobby. And it
is doing this ahead of the great Armenian campaign in 2015. Well done!
Excluding its do-not-pull-us-into-this-issue approach regarding the
Dec. 17 process, the US has not really raised its voice about the
anti-democratic practices but this does not mean that it endorses
the Turkish government's attitude. Rather, the concerns about the
developments on the Turkish domestic front have peaked. US official
do not publicly send harsh messages as they don't want to directly
confront the Turkish government and the broad masses supporting it.
They are worried about potential threats to US interests. On the other
hand, the amount of criticisms targeting the Turkish government
is increasingly noticeable in the remarks made by government
spokespeople. White House spokespeople were initially passing off
questions about the developments in Turkey as a "domestic matter" but
have recently started to politely refer to basic principles such as
"no one is above the law."
I don't believe in private talks; US officials still strongly advise
their Turkish counterparts to stick to the rule of law. Rather,
they focus on more technical matters. This includes the latest Paris
meeting between Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu and US
Secretary of State John Kerry. It appears that during this meeting,
Kerry had asked Davutoglu to declare that the US is not involved in
the recent crisis. But as Davutoglu didn't mention it during the joint
press conference, Kerry had to say: "Well, thank you very much, Ahmet.
I don't know if you want to say anything about our conversation
briefly on the subject of Turkey-U.S. and the internal politics. Or
do you want me to do that?"
US attitude depends on election results
It is quite normal for Kerry not to put Davutoglu in a difficult
position with his criticisms as Kerry seeks Davutoglu's support
in the Palestinian-Israeli peace process and the Syrian crisis. He
wouldn't want to allow their personal relations to worsen either. Yet
the overall mood in the US foreign bureaucracy, especially in the
White House, regarding the Turkish government's recent performance
is quite negative.
The Center for American Progress (CAP), a think tank closer to
US President Barack Obama, has been telling the White House to
exert pressure on the Erdogan administration, urging it to respect
democracy, human rights and the rule of law. However, given the
fact that the ice between the US and Tehran is thawing, the US is
signaling it might make a deal with the Bashar al-Assad regime and
that it is working with the Egyptian army, it is very unlikely for
Obama to abandon his realistic and pragmatic policy. Moreover, from
a US perspective, Turkey is performing better than other regimes in
the region from a democratic and economic standpoint. (It is sad for
Turkey to be compared to Middle Eastern countries rather than European
countries). The US administration's strategy is to keep its nose clean
and wait to see the Turkish election results on March 30 and revise
its strategy depending on the results. This means that if Erdogan's
electoral support is weakened, the US may step up its criticisms.
"If Turkey's ambassador to Washington acts in compliance with
Erdogan's orders and conveys the government's criticisms about the
Hizmet movement in the recent graft scandal to US officials, what will
be the officials' reactions?" I asked an expert from a US think tank.
"They would think the prime minister is in a great state of
helplessness," he replied. In such a situation, they perceive the
problem to lie with the government rather than with the ambassador
who relays the message. And this will be perceived as a great failure
in Erdogan's democratic qualities.
Those who order ambassadors to put their citizens abroad in a difficult
position in violation of human rights and national interests do not
understand this: The international community is more concerned about
whether the government sticks to democratic principles and the rule
of law and less about who triggered the recent political crisis.
The government had failed this test in connection to the Gezi Park
protests. It failed again regarding the Dec. 17 process. Foreign
countries may tolerate weaknesses such as corruption or fraud in their
business partners to a certain extent as such problems can be seen
in any country. The real problem is the leadership mentality that
exacerbates crises beyond settlement. At that point, foreign leaders
will start asking: "To what extent can we rely on and cooperate with
such a leader? Can we trust him?"
Decline of Erdogan and the AK Party
The arguments made during meetings held by various think tanks with
diverse ideological leanings in Washington in the past two weeks
have revealed the level of loss of confidence in the Justice and
Development Party (AK Party). All the distinguished experts speaking
at events organized by the Woodrow Wilson International Center, the
Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies
(SAIS), the Carnegie Institute and the Rethink Institute agreed that
the US no longer sees the AK Party as a role model for political
movements in the Middle East. They added that it is very likely that
Turkey might lose its role model status in the region. Currently,
it is virtually impossible to find an analyst who supports the AK
Party and the prime minister's hawkish attitude. What a catastrophic
end for a political movement which has helped Turkey make significant
progress in the last 11 years and for its leader!
My piece of advice to Prime Minister Erdogan is to stop sending
messages to Washington via the Turkish ambassador, but to directly
call President Obama and tell him about the "coup" which he claims
the US is involved in. Of course, he can do this if he can get an
appointment with Obama, with whom he cannot speak on the phone since
last summer... Certain AK Party officials who bombard their US friends
with e-mails should visit Washington and boldly attend the meetings
of think tanks. It is not elegant to try to cover up the corruption
claims by hiding behind the respectability of ambassadors. Honorable
diplomats of the Turkish Republic are not propaganda officials for
any political party. The AK Party has emptied the judiciary of essence.
What is next: diplomacy?
http://www.todayszaman.com/columnist/ali-h-aslan_337098_are-ambassadors-propaganda-officials-for-the-ruling-party.html
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
Today's Zaman, Turkey
Jan 20 2014
ALİ H. ASLAN
[email protected]
After Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan ordered Turkish ambassadors
to explain to foreign diplomats the recent graft and bribery scandal
from a conspiracy-oriented and partisan perspective, the Turkish
ambassador to Washington will certainly have the hardest time complying
with this instruction.
Indeed, he will have American officials who are uneasy with the Turkish
government implying the involvement of the US in a so-called "coup"
attempt against it. And if the ambassador blames the Hizmet movement,
which is the most active and influential Turkish civil society movement
in the US, this will amount to the Turkish government cutting off
its own nose. Turks don't need the Armenian lobby to defame Turkey;
the Turkish Republic is already undermining the Turkish lobby. And it
is doing this ahead of the great Armenian campaign in 2015. Well done!
Excluding its do-not-pull-us-into-this-issue approach regarding the
Dec. 17 process, the US has not really raised its voice about the
anti-democratic practices but this does not mean that it endorses
the Turkish government's attitude. Rather, the concerns about the
developments on the Turkish domestic front have peaked. US official
do not publicly send harsh messages as they don't want to directly
confront the Turkish government and the broad masses supporting it.
They are worried about potential threats to US interests. On the other
hand, the amount of criticisms targeting the Turkish government
is increasingly noticeable in the remarks made by government
spokespeople. White House spokespeople were initially passing off
questions about the developments in Turkey as a "domestic matter" but
have recently started to politely refer to basic principles such as
"no one is above the law."
I don't believe in private talks; US officials still strongly advise
their Turkish counterparts to stick to the rule of law. Rather,
they focus on more technical matters. This includes the latest Paris
meeting between Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu and US
Secretary of State John Kerry. It appears that during this meeting,
Kerry had asked Davutoglu to declare that the US is not involved in
the recent crisis. But as Davutoglu didn't mention it during the joint
press conference, Kerry had to say: "Well, thank you very much, Ahmet.
I don't know if you want to say anything about our conversation
briefly on the subject of Turkey-U.S. and the internal politics. Or
do you want me to do that?"
US attitude depends on election results
It is quite normal for Kerry not to put Davutoglu in a difficult
position with his criticisms as Kerry seeks Davutoglu's support
in the Palestinian-Israeli peace process and the Syrian crisis. He
wouldn't want to allow their personal relations to worsen either. Yet
the overall mood in the US foreign bureaucracy, especially in the
White House, regarding the Turkish government's recent performance
is quite negative.
The Center for American Progress (CAP), a think tank closer to
US President Barack Obama, has been telling the White House to
exert pressure on the Erdogan administration, urging it to respect
democracy, human rights and the rule of law. However, given the
fact that the ice between the US and Tehran is thawing, the US is
signaling it might make a deal with the Bashar al-Assad regime and
that it is working with the Egyptian army, it is very unlikely for
Obama to abandon his realistic and pragmatic policy. Moreover, from
a US perspective, Turkey is performing better than other regimes in
the region from a democratic and economic standpoint. (It is sad for
Turkey to be compared to Middle Eastern countries rather than European
countries). The US administration's strategy is to keep its nose clean
and wait to see the Turkish election results on March 30 and revise
its strategy depending on the results. This means that if Erdogan's
electoral support is weakened, the US may step up its criticisms.
"If Turkey's ambassador to Washington acts in compliance with
Erdogan's orders and conveys the government's criticisms about the
Hizmet movement in the recent graft scandal to US officials, what will
be the officials' reactions?" I asked an expert from a US think tank.
"They would think the prime minister is in a great state of
helplessness," he replied. In such a situation, they perceive the
problem to lie with the government rather than with the ambassador
who relays the message. And this will be perceived as a great failure
in Erdogan's democratic qualities.
Those who order ambassadors to put their citizens abroad in a difficult
position in violation of human rights and national interests do not
understand this: The international community is more concerned about
whether the government sticks to democratic principles and the rule
of law and less about who triggered the recent political crisis.
The government had failed this test in connection to the Gezi Park
protests. It failed again regarding the Dec. 17 process. Foreign
countries may tolerate weaknesses such as corruption or fraud in their
business partners to a certain extent as such problems can be seen
in any country. The real problem is the leadership mentality that
exacerbates crises beyond settlement. At that point, foreign leaders
will start asking: "To what extent can we rely on and cooperate with
such a leader? Can we trust him?"
Decline of Erdogan and the AK Party
The arguments made during meetings held by various think tanks with
diverse ideological leanings in Washington in the past two weeks
have revealed the level of loss of confidence in the Justice and
Development Party (AK Party). All the distinguished experts speaking
at events organized by the Woodrow Wilson International Center, the
Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies
(SAIS), the Carnegie Institute and the Rethink Institute agreed that
the US no longer sees the AK Party as a role model for political
movements in the Middle East. They added that it is very likely that
Turkey might lose its role model status in the region. Currently,
it is virtually impossible to find an analyst who supports the AK
Party and the prime minister's hawkish attitude. What a catastrophic
end for a political movement which has helped Turkey make significant
progress in the last 11 years and for its leader!
My piece of advice to Prime Minister Erdogan is to stop sending
messages to Washington via the Turkish ambassador, but to directly
call President Obama and tell him about the "coup" which he claims
the US is involved in. Of course, he can do this if he can get an
appointment with Obama, with whom he cannot speak on the phone since
last summer... Certain AK Party officials who bombard their US friends
with e-mails should visit Washington and boldly attend the meetings
of think tanks. It is not elegant to try to cover up the corruption
claims by hiding behind the respectability of ambassadors. Honorable
diplomats of the Turkish Republic are not propaganda officials for
any political party. The AK Party has emptied the judiciary of essence.
What is next: diplomacy?
http://www.todayszaman.com/columnist/ali-h-aslan_337098_are-ambassadors-propaganda-officials-for-the-ruling-party.html
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress