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The illusion surrounding Obama’s presidency
Related to country: United States

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By BALKAN DEVLEN*



There is global euphoria about US Sen. Barack Obama nowadays. Many think he will bring change and a new direction to America’s foreign policy. Turkey is no exception.

Several people, from journalists to politicians, expressed the opinion that an Obama presidency will be the start of a new era in Turkish-American relations. They are wrong, however, and this is why:

The new US president, whether Sen. John McCain or Sen. Obama, will face the same problems when he moves into the White House come January 2009. Among these problems, three concern Turkey. The first is the resurgence of Russia. The Russian Federation is making a geopolitical comeback, fueled by oil and natural gas revenues. In the last year or so it reached its zenith, for now, with the war in Georgia (Balkan Devlen, Today’s Zaman, Oct. 20, 2008). Turkey is naturally not happy with Russia aggressively playing hardball just outside its borders. However, Turkey is also not keen on directly confronting Russia, given its extensive trade relations as well as dependence on Russian natural gas. For the US, on the other hand, Turkey is in a position to block Russian ambitions further in the Caucasus (via its links with Georgia and Azerbaijan) and even create problems, if necessary, by virtue of being able to control the Turkish straits. Therefore, the next president of the United States will be pushing hard to force Turkey to take a clear stand against Russia. A position Turkey is not willing to be in right now.

The second and third problems concern Iraq and Iran, two interrelated problems of American foreign policy. The next president has to find a way to stabilize Iraq while avoiding the creation of a Shiite-dominated regime under the spell of Iran. At the same time, he has to deal with the emerging reality that Iran might be on the road to acquire technology to eventually develop nuclear weapons. The stabilization of Iraq requires the cooperation of Shiite militias, over which Iran holds significant influence, and the Iranians are using the nuclear card to get a better deal in the post-American Iraq. Americans need the rest of Iraq to be relatively calm to be able to bargain with the Iranians from a position of strength. Turkey also wants a stable Iraq as well as a non-nuclear Iran. However, it has its own concerns regarding Kurdish ambitions in northern Iraq. This is and will be a point of contention between the US and Turkey, regardless of who the next American president turns out to be.

As for Iran, Turkey would like to pass the buck to the Americans and the Israelis. In other words, let them sort out the problem while Turkey watches safely from the sidelines. Turkey prefers a non-nuclear Iran as anything to the contrary will seriously upset the regional balance of power. However, it is also not willing to be drawn into a military conflict with Iran. The US will push Turkey to put more pressure on Iran as the Russians and the Chinese are clearly against any economic sanctions and the Europeans are not very willing, to say the least. This will put Turkey in a position similar to the one it finds itself in vis-à-vis Russia, not willing to see a resurgent regional power right on its borders but also not willing to take a strong stand.

One cannot help but remember Leon Trotsky’s argument (with regards to Soviet expansion to the lands of former tsarist Russia after the 1920s) that “revolution does not change geography.” The problems facing Turkish-American relations will not change with the election of Sen. Obama. The long-term interests of Turkey and the United States are aligned. Neither country wants to see a resurgent Russia or a nuclear Iran. Both want to see a stable and democratic Iraq. However, in the short to medium term the means of achieving these ends will create friction between the two allies.

In fact, if Sen. Obama is elected on Nov. 4, this might even have a negative effect on Turkish-American relations in the short term. He is a closed box with regards to his attitude toward Turkey. The Armenian and Greek lobbies are supporting Mr. Obama; his running mate, Sen. Joe Biden, is no friend of Turkey, to say the least. Those hoping the above-mentioned problems will magically disappear if Mr. Obama is elected will be sorely disappointed. My hope is that those at the helm of Turkish foreign policy do not have the same illusions.


todayszaman
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
*Balkan Devlen is an assistant professor at the İzmir University of Economics.

October 28, 2008 | 8:37 AM Comments  0 comments

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