The issues they discussed cover almost half of global politics: Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan, the Caucasus, Cyprus, the NATO reform and the Middle East peace process. Given the weight of these issues, the Erdoğan-Obama meeting at the White House has given a new meaning to what President Barack Obama has called “model partnership” between Turkey and the US.Is this a shift from the traditional “strategic partnership” to a new model of relationship between Turkey and the US? In a sense, yes. The concept of strategic partnership shaped US-Turkish relations during the Cold War under the NATO umbrella. It was a security-based framework and reflected all the main elements of the Cold War era. It was a one-dimensional and more or less mechanical relationship. It had no strategic depth.
The end of the Cold War brought new possibilities and opened up new opportunity spaces. Turkey is mobilizing its resources to seize these new opportunities from foreign policy to trade. Turkish foreign policy is no longer an exclusively security-oriented policy. Rather, it looks at the other key dimensions of security and places it within a larger context of international relations. This makes sense at a time when hard power has ceased to be the main mover of regional and global politics.
The model partnership as defined by the Erdoğan-Obama meeting envisions a comprehensive relationship between the two countries. It spans a number of key issues including trade, regional security, science and technology and defense. The soft-power side of this model partnership is hard to miss. President Obama has extended his hand to practically everyone from China and Russia to Iran and Syria. Prime Minister Erdoğan follows a similar path in his relations with world leaders. The Alliance of Civilizations, one of the most important platforms of global soft power, of which Turkey is co-chair with Spain, provides a similar context for human-to-human diplomacy. In many ways, the Alliance of Civilizations, while not having a major tracking in the US, has already anticipated the coming of President Obama. This, in turn, is another point that confirms the growing depth of model partnership.
Having been trained in history and philosophy, I have always thought that individuals and personal relations play very little role in world politics. Countries, just like any other rational actor, follow certain rules to secure their interests. International organizations work according to established principles which allow very little space for personality-effect.
Having seen how Prime Minister Erdoğan runs his domestic and international agenda, I am more and more convinced that personal chemistry plays a significant role in building or destroying bridges between leaders and the countries they represent. The Erdoğan-Obama chemistry began to take shape when Obama visited Turkey in April. In the reception, which Prime Minister Erdoğan gave in President Obama’s honor in İstanbul, it was clear that he had found a respectable and serious partner, a leader he could discuss every major issue with openness.
I think this chemistry has already paid off in this visit where the two leaders virtually agreed on all the major issues affecting US-Turkish relations. This is of paramount importance given the challenging times ahead of us for both countries. For one, Turkey is consolidating its new activism in foreign policy but also dealing with a number of domestic issues including the recent Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK)-related disturbances. The future of Iraq and Afghanistan, the Iranian nuclear issue, stability in the Caucasus and the stalled Middle East peace process all affect Turkey’s national interests.
The Obama administration is also faced with a host of domestic and international issues including the recent Afghanistan plan, which seems to have raised more questions than providing answers to the future of US engagement in that country. As President Obama tries hard to meet the expectations his presidency generated in the US and around the world, he looks up to serious partners and strong-willed political leaders. I believe he has found such a partner in Erdoğan. I am sure this is reciprocated by Erdoğan’s view of Obama as well.
