Turkish-US Ties Gain New Depth
Ankara and Washington share too many concerns in the Middle East for any one issue, including Turkey's interest in getting Israel to lift its blockade of Gaza, to get in the way, writes Semih Idiz.
There was much speculation in February that Turkish-American ties were heading for the doldrums after the barbs exchanged between Washington and Ankara over remarks by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu about Israel and Syria, as well as comments by US Ambassador to Turkey Francis Ricciardone criticizing the Turkish judicial system.
I nevertheless suggested in a piece for Al-Monitor (Feb. 8) that the chill in ties would pass because neither side could really afford to harm a strategic relationship of 50 years standing, which in fact has weathered worse storms. There are still nuanced differences, of course, between the sides on specific issues; for example on how to approach the Syrian crisis, as well as disagreements concerning Turkey’s growing ties with the Iraqi Kurds in the energy field.
It was clear at the time, though, and still is, that the situation in the Middle East would ensure that neither Ankara nor Washington could push any differences they had beyond a certain point. It is obvious from today’s perspective that any chill in ties there might have been has indeed been overcome.
So much so that Secretary of State John Kerry, having already visited Turkey twice for consultations on regional issues within the space of two months, is due back in Istanbul on April 20. He will be in Turkey this time for a meeting of the "Friends of Syria" group, but it is clear that the sides will also continue their bilateral conversation on regional topics.
