Author: Kalantarian Kevo

ARMENIAN PRESIDENT TO CHOOSE BETWEEN TER-PETROSYAN AND ROBERT KOCHARYAN?

Tert.am
12:13 28.09.11

The people will elect their president in Armenia, Hovhannes Sahakyan,
an MP the Republican Party of Armenia (RPA), said at a meeting with
Hmayak Hovhannisyan, Chairman of the Union of Political Scientists
of Armenia.

He particularly touched on Armenia’s response to the reports on the
Medvedev-Putin “castle.” Sahakyan pointed out a number of external
factors that may have their impact. However, “the people will make
their choice at the next two elections.”

As to whether Robert Kocharyan will resume vigorous political
activities, Sahakyan said that said: “We know that, in one of his
speeches, when he was not president any more, Robert Kocharyan said
he would return to the political arena when he announced his return.

Since he has not so far made an announcement, making any forecasts
is a thankless business.” According to him, official reshuffle in
Russia will not have any impact on Armenia’s domestic political life.

In his turn, Hmayak Hovhannisyan voiced the opinion that the latest
developments in Russia are evidence of that state’s viability.

Russia’s all enemies are “the circles holding some negative
expectations for the future” ~V they hope for a serious confrontation
between the two persons atop the pyramid of power in Russia, which
would cause will Russia to share the fate of the USSR.

As regards an impact the Putin-Medvedev “castle” may have on
Armenia’s political life, Hovhannisyan said: “If the Armenian National
Congress views its political prospects in the context of possibility
of Serzh Sargsyan being in need of it as a factor to neutralize
Robert Kocharyan’s activities, and is able to enhance its role in
Armenia’s political life, it will find itself in a situation similar
to that Russia’s liberals found themselves in. They actually hoped to
intensify their activities due to Medvedev-Putin confrontation.” The
expert noted that the latest developments in Russia will force the
Armenian president to decide in favor of a particular course. “Two
courses are available in Armenia now ~V Levon TerPetrosyan’s and
Robert Kocharyan’s. It has to do with the Nagorno-Karabakh problem,
which is the result of victory,” Hovhannisyan said. If Serzh Sargsyan
accepts Ter-Petrosyan’s ideas about Nagorno-Karabakh, Robert Kocharyan
will turn into a “core of opposition” in Armenia. Another option is
Serzh Sargsyan’s following Robert Kocharyan’s course.

In response, Hovhannes Sahakyan said that the Armenian president is
pursuing a clear policy and has no need of guidelines.

Tert.am

12:13 ~U 28.09.11

The people will elect their president in Armenia, Hovhannes Sahakyan,
an MP the Republican Party of Armenia (RPA), said at a meeting with
Hmayak Hovhannisyan, Chairman of the Union of Political Scientists
of Armenia.

He particularly touched on Armenia’s response to the reports on the
Medvedev-Putin “castle.” Sahakyan pointed out a number of external
factors that may have their impact. However, “the people will make
their choice at the next two elections.”

As to whether Robert Kocharyan will resume vigorous political
activities, Sahakyan said that said: “We know that, in one of his
speeches, when he was not president any more, Robert Kocharyan said
he would return to the political arena when he announced his return.

Since he has not so far made an announcement, making any forecasts
is a thankless business.” According to him, official reshuffle in
Russia will not have any impact on Armenia’s domestic political life.

In his turn, Hmayak Hovhannisyan voiced the opinion that the latest
developments in Russia are evidence of that state’s viability.

Russia’s all enemies are “the circles holding some negative
expectations for the future” ~V they hope for a serious confrontation
between the two persons atop the pyramid of power in Russia, which
would cause will Russia to share the fate of the USSR.

As regards an impact the Putin-Medvedev “castle” may have on
Armenia’s political life, Hovhannisyan said: “If the Armenian National
Congress views its political prospects in the context of possibility
of Serzh Sargsyan being in need of it as a factor to neutralize
Robert Kocharyan’s activities, and is able to enhance its role in
Armenia’s political life, it will find itself in a situation similar
to that Russia’s liberals found themselves in. They actually hoped to
intensify their activities due to Medvedev-Putin confrontation.” The
expert noted that the latest developments in Russia will force the
Armenian president to decide in favor of a particular course. “Two
courses are available in Armenia now ~V Levon TerPetrosyan’s and
Robert Kocharyan’s. It has to do with the Nagorno-Karabakh problem,
which is the result of victory,” Hovhannisyan said. If Serzh Sargsyan
accepts Ter-Petrosyan’s ideas about Nagorno-Karabakh, Robert Kocharyan
will turn into a “core of opposition” in Armenia. Another option is
Serzh Sargsyan’s following Robert Kocharyan’s course.

In response, Hovhannes Sahakyan said that the Armenian president is
pursuing a clear policy and has no need of guidelines.

ERDOGAN: TURKEY IS SLAVE TO 5 PERMANENT SEAT HOLDERS

Tert.am
11:47 28.09.11

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has given an exclusive
interview to the British Times on the sidelines of the UN General
Assembly’s meeting in New York.

The premier addressed the Turkish Israeli relations, the Palestinian
issue, the US-Turkey relations, the Arab Spring and the developments
in Syria.

Erdogan expressed discontent with the Middle East Quartet (Russia,
US, EU and UM) dealing with the Palestinian issue, accusing the latter
of not being sincere.

“If the Quartet was so willing to resolve this issue, they would have
imposed certain issues on Israel today. Until today, the UN Security
Council has issued more than 89 resolutions on prospective sanctions
related to Israel, but they’ve never been executed,” he said.

Erdogan further stressed the importance of reforms in the United
Nations.

“I’d like all the parties involved to be sincere and stand behind
those resolutions. And that is actually also where a need for reform
is needed in the UN. What’s the deal with these permanent-seat-holding
members in the Security Council? They should be eliminated. The entire
world is literally a slave to the decisions of these five permanent
seat holders [Russia, US, China, Great Britain, France],” he added.

As for the situation in Syria, the Turkish PM ruled out any possibility
of preserving friendship with the country’s president, Bashar al-Assad.

“Assad told me “we only have about 83 political offenders in prison.”

But actually there are thousands and thousands. Those individuals
have never been involved in violent attacks or uprisings. They’ve been
unfortunately incarcerated based on their faith or their expressions,”
Erdogan noted.

He further criticized French President Nicolas Sarkozy and German
Chancellor Angela Merkel for keeping Turkey for preventing Turkey’s
EU integration process.

When [former French President Jacques] Chirac or [former German
Chancellor Gerhard] Schroder were there, Turkey would be involved in
all of the European leaders’ summits. But when [current Chancellor
Angela] Merkel or [French President Nicolas] Sarkozy took over their
offices, the ambience changed dramatically. Despite their attitudes,
we were determined to continue this path toward EU membership,”
the Turkish PM said.

TER-PETROSIAN IS TO BLAME FOR CURRENT SITUATION, SAY GERMAN AMBASSADOR

asbarez
Tuesday, September 27th, 2011

German Ambassador to Armenia Hans-Jochen Schmidt

YEREVAN (Combined Sources)-The current socio-political and economic
complication in Armenia are the legacy left by former president
Levon Ter-Petrosian, said Hans-Jochen Schmidt, the German Ambassador
to Armenia during a conference Tuesday organized by the Civilitas
Foundation.

Speaking at a conference entitled, “Assessing Independence in
Armenia and the Region,” the German envoy said that Ter-Petrosian
must personally accept responsibility for what happened during his
term from 1994 to 1997.

“I often hear how the first president criticizes elections and the
current authorities during opposition rallies. I asked one of his
advisors what he thinks about elections from 1994 to 1997 and he
responded by saying that I have wrong information,” said Schmidt.

The German envoy, however, said opposition criticism is justified,
because there is an oligarchic state in Armenia, “But he has to
remember that the foundation for such phenomena was established during
his administration.”

While saying that it was a positive step for the Ter-Petrosian’s
Armenian National Congress to be granted the right to hold rallies
at Liberty Square, but added that “I think that from a political
standpoint asking to hold rallies solely in Liberty Square is naive.

If people want to assemble, they can do so anywhere and in any square.”

On the foreign policy front, the German envoy said the “outside world”
cannot force any decision on Armenia.

“The EU also takes steps in resolving the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict,
as well as the normalization of relations with Turkey, but they can’t
force anything,” he said.

Schmidt said the most important step in Armenia-Turkey relations is
the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries,
after which discussions on other issues can begin.

“What’s important is that the parties understand that by establishing
diplomatic relations, no one is doing anyone a favor; it is a normal
process,” he said.

Schmidt also commented on last week’s military parade dedicated to
the independence anniversary, saying he was impressed by the display.

“I liked the fact that the parade showed that Armenians have certain
capabilities, and if others are interested in war, the Armenian state
will provide an adequate response,” explained the Ambassador.

He called it a stabilizing factor for the region, saying that the
capabilities displayed at the parade signal that Armenia is able to
develop the expertise needed to stabilize any situation.

L’OPPOSITION INVITE LES MILITANTS A SE MOBILISER
[email protected]

armenews.com
mercredi 28 septembre 2011

ARMENIE

Le principal parti d’opposition en Armenie a exhorte mardi ses
partisans a se presenter en grand nombre a sa manifestation ” pour
participer directement a l’elaboration et l’adoption d’un programme
democratique “.

” Le rassemblement du 30 Septembre doit etre un tournant en termes
de frequentation a nos manifestations “, a declare aux medias Levon
Zurabian, un ancien membre du Congrès national armenien (HAK).

S’adressant a plusieurs milliers de personnes qui manifestaient sur
la place de la Liberte vendredi dernier, le leader du HAK, Levon
Ter-Petrossian, a souligne la participation modeste des militants
aux appels ces derniers mois.

“Ce sera un test pour vous. Chacun de vous doit apporter au moins cinq
personnes pour le prochain rallye. Si vous faites cela, on atteindra
tous nos objectifs, a declare Ter-Petrossian.

Tout en exprimant la volonte du HAK de trouver un accord de compromis
avec les autorites, Ter-Petrossian a declare encore que son bloc
chercherait a augmenter la pression sur le gouvernement par le biais
de rassemblements plus frequents.

Lors d’une conference de presse, Zurabian a rappele que les autorites
ont fait un certain nombre de concessions sous la pression de
rassemblements organises par le HAK au printemps.

En mettant en parallèle les recentes revolutions arabes dans les
pays comme l’Egypte, la Tunisie et la Libye, le depute d’opposition
a declare : “Lorsque les gens sont aux pieds des dirigeants, il
appartient aux autorites de decider quelle variante elles choisissent,
si elles souhaitent une transition democratique, civilisee ou … Je
ne pense pas que nos autorites prefèrent une effusion de sang ou une
guerre civile.”

Commentant l’intention du HAK d’intensifier ses pressions sur le
gouvernement par des rassemblements plus frequents, le porte-parole
du Parti Republicain d’Armenie, Edouard Sharmazanov lundi a averti :
“Que chacun oublie que des affrontements soient possibles en Armenie.

Personne ne peut diriger la societe en affrontements politiques”.

US LAWSUIT CHARGES TURKEY’S INCRILIK AIR BASE SITS ON STOLEN ARMENIAN LAND
by Yigal Schleifer

EurasiaNet.org
Sept 27 2011
NY

The Incirlik air base in southern Turkey, which is leased out to the
United States, is among Washington’s most important strategic assets,
serving as a logistics and support hub for American military operations
in Afghanistan, Iraq and other places. But a lawsuit working its way
through a California court alleges that the air base sits on land
that was illegally taken from an Armenian family in 1923.

Some background:

The lawsuit, which was filed past year against these banks and under
American Armenian Alex Bakalian’s guidance, states that in 1923 the
lands-in Adana, Turkey-belonging to their families were transferred
to the Bank of Agriculture. On one of the 4 plots of these lands the
Incirlik military base was built, which is leased to US. The lawsuit
demands the value of these lands, which comprise $63 million US,
and part of the income received from the lease of Incirlik, which
totals $100 million.

Turkish human rights lawyer and columnist for the Today’s Zaman
newspaper Orhan Kemal Cengiz has written some good columns about the
case recently, offering more details about the case. This column of his
reprints a very interesting interview with Bakalian’s lawyer, in which
he lays out the legal framework for the case. In a subsequent column,
Cengiz details the defense submitted by the Turkish banks being sued in
the case (the Turkish governmnet itself has not submitted a defense,
according to the columnist). Both columns are worth reading — this
case could prove to be a very significant one.

A TEAM OF 1: HOURY GEBESHIAN WILL BE THE LONE ARMENIAN COMPETITOR AT WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP
By Nick Hegland

University of Iowa Athletics
Sept 27 2011

IOWA CITY, Iowa — Former University of Iowa women’s gymnast Houry
Gebeshian has advanced her gymnastics career to a level aspiring
gymnasts dream of. She’ll take the next step Oct. 7 at the 2011 World
Gymnastics Championship in Japan.

Gebeshian began competing at the age of seven. She was a state champion
and national competitor as a prep before becoming a three-time All-Big
Ten selection, both academically and athletically, for the Hawkeyes.

Although her eligibility is has expired, Gebeshian isn’t putting an
end to her career. The Newton, Mass., native will represent Armenia
at the 2011 World Gymnastics Championship.

Gebeshian will not only be representing an entire country, the
birthplace of her grandparents, she will be competing for Armenia by
herself — a one person team.

She could win every event and still not accumulate enough points to
bring back a championship for the country. That’s not her objective…

it’s much larger.

Armenia possesses a wealth of talented female athletes but lacks the
funding needed to recruit, train and showcase such talent. Personal
success will remain high on Gebeshian’s priority list — it always
has been — but she understands her role for the country, gymnastics
and women’s athletics in general.

“My job for Armenia is not only to compete, but to show female
athletes in Armenia that it is possible to compete on an elite,
international level,” said Gebeshian. “The talent is there. I want
to encourage them to pursue their goals and hopefully inspire them
to advance to that next level, similar to what I’m doing.”

Gebeshian’s family has connections with a liaison to the Armenian
Olympic Committee. After a successful Big Ten season and an invitation
to compete as an individual in the all-around competition at the
2011 NCAA Championships, Gebeshian clearly displayed the talent to
compete at a higher level. The invitation was extended, with a mutual
understanding of the broader objective, and Gebeshian quickly accepted.

“I knew that I wanted to continue to compete so this was an easy
decision for me,” said Gebeshian. “I was born and raised in the United
States, but my family is from Armenia. This will be a great honor.”

With eyes set on such a large stage, most would put all tasks aside
in preparation. It’s just the opposite for Gebeshian. She juggles a
full class schedule as an integrated physiology major, works for the
UI athletics department and still manages to find time for several
hours of training seven days a week.

“I seem to have no free time, but I’ve learned that the work is
necessary to accomplish the goals I want to achieve,” said Gebeshian.

“Such a busy schedule and focus is necessary, but when those goals
are met it’s all worth it.”

To say she has a lot on her plate is a gross understatement, but
Gebeshian has shown she is more than capable. In October, all of the
work will be put aside for several days in Tokyo as she strives for
personal perfection and attempts to advance women’s athletics for an
entire country solely by herself.

“I honestly don’t know what to expect once I get there, but the
opportunity is too good to turn down,” said Gebeshian. “If I can
advance the sport of gymnastics and women’s athletics in a country
all while competing, the work I’ve put in will be worth it.”

ARMENIAN ATHLETES PREPARE FOR LONDON PARALYMPICS GAMES

news.am
Sept 27 2011
Armenia

YEREVAN. – Armenian athletes are actively training to participate
in London 2012 Paralympics Games properly. Photographer Vigen Mnoyan
made photos of 11 athletes during the trainings showing their desire
to overcome the obstacles, British Embassy in Yerevan informs Armenian
News-NEWS.am.

According to them, UK Embassy of Armenia, Armenian office of the
British Council, Armenian National Paralympics committee, and Armenian
representative of Samsung Electronics organize sports show and photo
exhibition ahead of London 2012 Paralympics Games.

Besides the photos, history of disabled athletes will be presented.

Movie from See Britain series about British Paralympics athlete,
Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson will also be shown. Paralympics athletes,
representatives of Pyunik union of disabled people, the UK Embassy in
Armenia and the British Council will climb Mount Aragats on Thursday.

Events held parallel to the 1948 London Olympic Games served to found
the Paralympics movement. Paralympics Games in 2008 featured 3951
representatives from 146 states, while the first time it had only
400 athletes from 23 states.

PM ERDOGAN COMPLETED HIS CONTACTS IN NY

The Official Turkish Radio and Television Corporation

Sept 26 2011
Turkey

All eyes were set on the United States throughout the week because of
the 66th UN Gerneral Assembley Sessions in New York. The delegations
of more than 200 countries particiapted in the meetings while the
attention was centered on Turkey’s delegation.

The Turkish delegation headed by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan
was the most favourite with the most remarkable speech, messages,
agreements and the most critical discussions at the General Assembley.

The first critical meeting was held with US President Barack Obama.

Alhough US Presidents do not have private meetings at this kind
of summits President Obama broke that tradition this time by his
meeting with Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan.The most critical
issue of one and a half hour meeting was terrorism because a painful
news had been recieved from Ankara and Siirt prior to the meeting
of the both leaders. The both leaders gave messages of a joint fight
against terrorism prior to their meeting. The last and most critical
of the 50 meetings of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan was with
Iranian President Mahmood Ahmedinejad. Coincidentally another news
of a heinous attack was recieved prior to this meeting which aimed to
engage Erdogan with terrorism and keep him away from the international
issues. Whereas Erdogan sided with the oppressed again.

In his speech at the UN General Assembley Prime Minister Recep Tayyip
Erdogan emphasized that the Palestinian State must be recognized as
a full UN member and rendered unconditional support to the State of
Palestine. Prime Minister Erdogan Enhanced severely criticized Israeli
policy on Palestine and reacted to the United Nations for remaining
unmindful against Israel. Erdogan underscored that thery have no
problems with the Israeli people. Prime Minisrer Recep Tayyip Erdogan
also spoke about the rights of Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus.

Erdogan called on all concerned parties to deter Greek Cyprior
Administration from any provocative attempts otherwise they would
take necessary steps. Erdogan also gave the message of oil and gas
drilling to Greek Cypriot Sector in accordance with the Continental
shelf Agreement between Turkey and TRNC signed by Prime Minister Recep
Tayyip Erdogan and TRNC President Dervis Eroglu in New York. Erdogan
said that with this agreement a part of the Continental Shelf of TRNC
in the Mediterranean has been delimitated with the line secured by
the combination of 27 geographic coordinates in accordance with the
international law and rightful principles. Touching upon the human
tragedy in Somalia Erdogan said that the situation in Somalia is a
shame for the international community. Regarding the Upper Karabakh
issue Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said the ligering of a
solution to the Upper Karabakh issue is absolutely unacceptable.

Finding a solution to the international issues is a political and
moral responsibility of all of us before they become gangrenous. Prime
Minister Erdogan did not ignore the issue of terrorism. Erdogan
discussed cross border operation with Iraqi President Jalal Talabani.

Following his meeting Erdogan said that the joint steps with Iraq will
continue in their fight against terrorism. Prime Minister Erdogan said
that the operations will only end after the terrorist organization
gives up arms. Erdogan said that joint steps could be taken against
terrorism with Iran.

Following a full week of contacts in New York returned home.

THE END OF THE ‘ZERO PROBLEMS’ POLICY?

Today’s Zaman
Sept 27 2011
Turkey

“Turkey is increasingly bolstering its position in the region after
it severed its ties with Syria after jarring with the Bashar al-Assad
administration and drawn ire from Iran after agreeing to host NATO’s
missile shield project and souring its relations with Iraq after
launching cross-border military operations into northern Iraq.

A statement released by the Turkish Foreign Ministry on the matter
said: ‘Our previous “zero problems with neighbors” policy has proved
inefficient. We’ll try this new policy for some time and see the
outcome.’ It was further stressed that new diplomatic crises with
Greece, Bulgaria, Russia, Armenia and, if possible, with Georgia
were planned.”

The above-mentioned paragraph comes from a lengthy fictional news story
(see ) from Zaytung,
a website that sports intelligently designed fictional humorous news
stories. If something has been caught on the radar of black humor,
then we have to take that matter very seriously. Indeed, if a matter
that has become the subject matter of humor has a dimension of reality
that cannot be ignored, humor may become the most painful expression
of reality. Let us leave humor to humorists and ask our lingering
question directly: Has Turkey really put an end to its policy of zero
problems with neighbors?

The “yes” answer seems to stick, particularly given the entirety of
problems that have recently emerged with some of our neighbors. Until
very recently, Turkey’s repressive state apparatus which was waging
war even against its own citizens through its anti-democratic
practices has been able to recruit legitimacy to its despotic
existence and its indifference to demands for democracy and freedoms
by imposing rigid security-oriented paradigms under the pretext of
external threats. Since 2002, however, this despotic character of
the state could be hindered to some extent to make democratization
less unfettered, all thanks to Turkey’s new foreign policy. This new
foreign policy mentality that seeks to bring peace and stability to
the region and stresses Turkey’s soft power –aptly named the “zero
problems with neighbors” policy — made it possible to put an end to
the dominance in the system enjoyed by the anti-democratic security
elite which had in the past meddled with the Turkish democracy directly
three times and indirectly two times.

During this process, the distorted motto “Turks do not have friends
other than Turks” has been discarded by Turkey, which has now increased
mutual dependence to become a favorable and reliable partner in the
region. And, ignoring the problem-ridden areas between itself and
its neighbors, Turkey has managed to multiply potential areas for
cooperation with its neighbors. Starting to tailor its foreign policy
with the appeal of its friendship and cooperation that now rest on its
new diplomatic mindset rather than on the threatening power of its army
or its animosity, Turkey has been able to transition to a different
plane of bilateral relations with Iran, Iraq, Syria, Greece and Russia,
with which it had very problematic ties in the past. Thus, flights to
and from these countries have increased and the volume of mutual trade
with them has skyrocketed while visa requirements have been mutually
abolished with some of them, making borders insignificant. Despite
its problematic past with them, Turkey has started to hold high-level
strategic meetings in the form of joint cabinet meetings with Syria,
Iraq, Greece and even with Russia. Turkey has always been happy with
and optimistic about this new process and it has always prided itself
on being the driving force of this process.

As a matter of fact, as of today, Turkey has not had a change of
heart. There is currently nothing to justify the assumption that
Turkey will opt for an animosity-centered discourse instead of a
peace-oriented one, under favorable conditions. Yet, Turkey has had
to make a choice in light of the developments collectively known as
the Arab Spring. Should it have maintained good relations with the
regimes of the countries with which it had entertained extremely
good relations until very recently or should it have sided with the
people who were being targeted by these regimes? With an unerring
decision, Turkey chose to support the victimized people at the
expense of growing bitter with the regimes, which it believes will
not be sustainable in the medium or long term. All problems Turkey is
currently having with Iran and Syria and might be having in the near
future with other anti-democratic Arab regimes are the inevitable
outcome of the Arab Spring. At the expense of risking its short and
medium-term national interests, Turkey has made a choice in favor of
supporting the democratization and liberalization of the countries in
the region. And it has spent all the credit it has earned through its
zero problems policy to tell these countries through advice that they
should listen to their people’s demands for democracy and implement
reforms. The responsibility for failing to take heed of this advice
does not belong to Turkey.

The deadlock in Turkey’s relations with Israel is in fact nothing but
a legacy of the time when it was pursuing its zero problems policy. It
was no longer possible for Turkey, which was cementing strong ties
of friendship with its neighbors and the Arab world, to prolong its
special high-level relations with Israel, which was unreasonably
continuing to stage violent attacks against Palestinians. Moreover,
with the Israeli side leaving its friendly guise and spearheading
anti-Turkish propaganda, other problems have occurred as well. It is
no coincidence that Israel, the Greek Cypriots and Greece are acting
in unison with one another in the eastern Mediterranean. The Arab
Spring and tremors it caused have triggered a major shift of balances
across the Middle East. The bad thing, however, is that the region
stands in the middle of a risky transition process as the disrupted
balances cannot be restored. In this process, the high prospects
of the peoples’ voice becoming louder for democracy represent the
greatest opportunity for Turkey, but this should be seen as a risk
for the anti-democratic trio of Israel, Iran and other Arab regimes,
which seemingly have clashing interests.

To sum up, my point is that Turkey has never jettisoned its zero
problems policy. Instead, this policy went temporarily stagnant due
to the Arab Spring and the turmoil it sparked in various parts of
the region. Turkey will resume its zero problems policy after the
people in the region start to reshape their regimes through emergent
democratic channels that will be available to their expectations and
demands. It is for this reason that Turkey has never targeted the
people in the region with its occasionally threatening rhetoric that
does not befit it but which it is sometimes compelled to use. On the
contrary, this rhetoric is aimed at the regimes that oppress their
own people, and even resort to using arms against them. The tension
in our relations with Israel is the outcome of the latter’s acting
without common sense. No one should doubt that it is Turkey which
has understood it better and earlier that the policy of zero problems
with neighbors is not an option but a must for peaceful coexistence
in the region. Turkey should still do its best to minimize as soon
as possible the number of countries that may potentially grow hostile
to it. If possible, it must even bring this number down to zero.

WHAT IS WRONG WITH IRAN?
by ABDULHAMÄ°T BÄ°LÄ°CÄ

Today’s Zaman
Sept 27 2011
Turkey

If I had not witnessed Turkey’s struggle to protect Iran’s rights in
dealing with its NATO allies, including the US, regarding the recent
missile shield issue, I could have found the recent accusations from
Tehran justifiable. But like everyone else who has been following
foreign policy matters, Iran is also aware that on its way to the
NATO summit in Lisbon, the radar issue was the most difficult one
for Turkey.

In fact, this missile defense system is something that Turkey needs
for its own self-defense. Turkey could have complied entirely with the
original NATO proposal, but did not. The issue was discussed within
the framework of NATO’s new strategic concept, and Turkey has been
negotiating changes to this concept for months, even though that could
have created tension with its allies. Because I personally attended
the critical summit held in Lisbon along with President Abdullah Gul,
I am familiar with Turkey’s theses, arguments and efforts.

At every opportunity, Turkey stressed that the new NATO strategy
should not effectively divide the world or this region into camps
of foes and friends. For this reason, it did not want to include a
reference to any country as an enemy in the documents. In an attempt
not to disturb Iran, with which Turkey has been trying to maintain firm
ties, Turkey also unilaterally defended some thorny issues against
the whole alliance. For instance, it asked that the radar system be
designated in such a way that it would be controlled by NATO, not
the US, so that Turkey would have a say in its implementation and
control. Another condition Turkey insisted upon was that the data to
be collected by the system would not be forwarded to non-NATO countries
(referring to Israel).

This struggle, which Turkey carried out despite the fact that
it would bear the risk of confirming the West’s suspicions of the
Justice and Development Party (AK Party), worked out in the end. The
missile defense system was formulated as part of NATO. The strategic
document does not make any reference to Iran, despite the desires of
some European powers which have firm commercial ties with Tehran.

On the issue of Iran’s nuclear ambitions, which have inflicted fear and
intimidation on the region and occupied the global agenda, Turkey has
extended support to Tehran by making big sacrifices. The negotiation
process on Tehran’s nuclear program, which Turkey initiated, together
with Brazil, at a point when even Iran’s allies China and Russia had
turned their backs on Tehran, had no other objective but to support
Iran. And at the Security Council meeting held right after the nuclear
swap deal, Turkey voted against the bill imposing sanctions against
Iran despite the risk of confrontation with its allies.

For some time, Iran, which should be grateful for Turkey’s efforts in
the face of these realities and facts, has been making threatening
statements about the radar issue. First, the Iranian Foreign
Minister Ali Akbar Salihi, noting that his country is worried about
the installation of the anti-missile shield system in Turkey, asked
Turkey to review the decision. It was interesting that Salihi made this
statement while he was meeting with his Armenian counterpart Edward
Nalbandyan in Tehran. Subsequent to this statement, more recently,
Mohammad Kowsari, a member of an Iranian parliamentary commission on
national security and foreign policy, described the decision as a big
strategic mistake and representing a double standard. The statement by
Turkish Foreign Ministry, noting that “the radar system is not being
set up against any country; it is being set up for defense purposes,
and is a warning system,” did not alter Iran’s reaction.

Yes, Iran is an important neighbor for Turkey, with which its borders
have not changed for a few centuries. Our histories are intertwined.

It has a large Turkish population. It is an important energy supplier
for Turkey. Iran is Turkey’s way out to Asia whereas Turkey is
Iran’s connection with the West. Despite competition in many fields,
improving ties will be helpful to both sides. However, I doubt that
Iran appreciates what Turkey has been doing for the two countries’
mutual discourse on peace in the region. For instance, just like
Iran’s nuclear issue, Turkey has a Cyprus problem. However, Turkey
has not seen any gesture on this matter from Iran so far.

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan attended an aÅ~_ure (Noah’s
pudding) event held by the Jafaris of Turkey. He paid visit to Sistani
during his official trip to Iraq. But we have not seen these gestures
reflected on the large Sunni population in Iran. Let alone grand
gestures, media reports indicate that leading Iranian Sunnis could not
get a permit to perform their Eid al Fitr prayer in Tehran. The goal
for the creation of commercial ties with Iran is big, but the current
setting does not favor Turkey, and businessmen here believe that Iran
is reluctant to open its market. Despite its Islam-oriented policy,
Iran is closer to Armenia in its Caucasus policy.

Well, these all could be considered normal: States are concerned with
their own interests in foreign policy. But why does a radar system
for defense purposes, revised by Turkey based on Iran’s concerns,
bother Iran so much? Its name says it all: It is a defense system. Why
would you react to this if you did not intend aggression? It is in
fact Iran which, in addition to nuclear weapons, has been making
efforts to develop conventional arms, especially mid- and long-range
ballistic missiles.

These include a type of long-range fast ballistic missile called
Shahab. Shahabs are manufactured in three classes (1, 2, 3). The
range of a Shahab 3B is between 2,000 and 2,500 kilometers; this
means that Iranian missiles can reach most parts of the Middle East,
including Turkey. Isn’t it strange that Turkey remains silent about
this attempt to build armaments for aggressive purposes, whereas Iran
is disgruntled with a defense radar system? I wish Iran, like Turkey,
had a vision of transforming the region into a basin of peace. But
for this, like Turkey, Iranian internal politics needs normalization.