Turkey not flexing its muscles but pressing for universal values

    The killing of Turks on a ship in international waters has brought relations between one-time friends Turkey and Israel, which had already been on a downward spiral for some time, close to the breaking point. Ankara had already stated many times that a return to normal bilateral relations was conditional on concrete steps by Israel to end the years-long humanitarian tragedy in Gaza, long before Israeli commandos stormed the ships, with 700 people on board who were accompanying 10,000 tons of medical supplies, housing materials and other aid to Gaza.

    Leaving aside the fact about bilateral relations between Israel and Turkey, questions over the limits of Turkey’s soft power have been recently raised in regards to its leverage over its NATO ally the US due to its efforts to internationalize the issue of the Israeli raid. Ankara, from the very first moment, has stated that Israel would have to bear the consequences and pay the price of violating international law.    

    Ankara, however, rejects the interpretation of the issue as a kind of power game and sidesteps questions over its position as a regional actor. Instead, the Turkish capital prefers to note that the dynamics and principles of Turkey’s foreign policy are based on the notion of moral depth. “In regards to Turkey’s position, there is nothing at all to test. Turkey has not embarked on this road to flex its muscles; what we say is a manifestation of what kind of a world we want to see,” a senior Turkish diplomat told Sunday’s Zaman, when asked about suggestions that the upcoming process will be a test of the limits of Turkey’s soft power.

    “Whatever you call it, the zero-problem-with-neighbors policy or maximum integration with neighbors, since we don’t have any intention of imposing a new system, nobody can talk about a failure in the end,” the senior diplomat, speaking on condition of anonymity, added.

Earlier this week, speaking at a panel discussion organized by the İstanbul Metropolitan Municipality, Strategic Forecasting, Inc. (STRATFOR) CEO George Friedman said Israel will be forced to reconsider its policies, while suggesting that American power in the region is fading and that there is a growing duty in Turkey to get involved as a problem-solver in the Middle East.

Friedman, meanwhile, in addition to the conventional definition of power as “soft” or “hard,” offered a new term, “deep power,” which he says is a combination of military and economic power. According to Friedman, the European Union has economic but not military power, Russia military but not economic power and only Turkey and the US possess deep power.

Value of alliance ties

The Turkish diplomat speaking with Sunday's Zaman chose to make his point clearer by giving an example from Turkey's relationships with neighboring Iran, which is considered a foe both by Israel and the United States. “Turkish leaders believe that wrestling with Iran is not right and haven't hesitated to go to Tehran numerous times to pave the way to resolving the dispute [surrounding Iran's controversial nuclear program] through peaceful means. Would anybody dare to defend the position that wrestling with Iran is the right thing to do?” the diplomat asked, in apparent reference to the efforts led by Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu, who has paid several visits to Tehran.

During the latest visit, weeks before the Israeli raid, Turkey and Brazil, both non-permanent members of the UN Security Council, signed an agreement with Iran to temper Tehran's nuclear ambitions, a compromise that was not welcomed by Israel.

The United States and Turkey were already at odds over Iran, with Turkey and Brazil pushing the new proposed atomic fuel deal for Tehran as a diplomatic alternative to the tough UN sanctions that Washington wants. The United States has rejected the proposal as too little, too late and says the measure does not address core concerns that Tehran is seeking to develop nuclear weapons. Tehran says its nuclear program is purely peaceful.

“The values we have put forth in both the Iran case and the Israel case are universal and if these values are accepted, it will be the universal values which have been accepted, not Turkey's position or imposition. And they will not be accepted just because those values have been defended by Turkey,” the Turkish diplomat explained, continuing on to the issue of the future of bilateral relations between Ankara and Washington.

“If those values are accepted, we will be all the better for it,” the diplomat said, highlighting the fate of the relationship between Ankara and Washington.

Nightmare scenario for US

According to the same diplomat, who rejects the argument that Turkey's power is being tested, the word “test” is extremely appropriate when it comes to the issue of bilateral relations between Ankara and Washington. “Yes, the latest situation poses a serious test for this alliance relationship, and I believe that US officials are very well aware of that, as the very first words and emphasis from [US Secretary of State] Clinton and her delegation was ‘the alliance relationship,' accompanied by repeated condolences,” the diplomat said, referring to an emergency meeting held in Washington between Clinton and Davutoğlu on Tuesday.

“On the one side there is Turkey, with which the US has had an alliance for over half a century. The US has been dealing with facing the fact that it is not the sole player in the Middle East. On the other side, however you call it, there is a ‘special relationship' between the United States and Israel. The probability of seeing these two countries with which US has significant ties in a scrum is a nightmare scenario for Washington -- a nightmare both in political and military terms. Clinton and the delegation carefully took note of Turkey's concerns and quickly took precautions.”

Referring to the fact that Israel had responded positively to Ankara's ultimatum threatening to review the state of its ties with the Jewish state unless it safely returned each and every Turkish national in the Gaza-bound aid convoy, another Turkish official speaking with Sunday's Zaman indicated that US probably played a role in the rapid Israeli response to Turkey's demands.

The official, who was speaking on condition of anonymity and accompanied Davutoğlu during the Washington talks, said that following the talks with Turkish officials, the US seems to have warned the Netanyahu government by conveying Turkey's demand for the rapid release of the deceased, the injured and all foreign activists, saying: “These people are serious. This situation is an accident waiting to happen, and if it does even we cannot save you.”

The diplomat, who earlier cautioned that the alliance between Ankara and Washington is being tested, nonetheless sounded hopeful about the tragic incident's impact on the Middle East peace process.

“Sometimes shocks are needed, and this time the shock has to be handled with care by both the United States and Israel. Israeli politicians may be tactless, but they are not without sense. They will eventually see that their stubbornness in not responding to the international community's demands will lead to further isolation for them. Obama will not be willing to add another knot to the tangle of problems already ensnaring him,” the diplomat said, stressing that an end to the Gaza blockade is not the final goal for Turkey.

“Ending Gaza's blockade is an emergency step, but it is not sufficient on its own, and it would just mean turning back to the status quo of 2007, which was not a nice picture then, either. All channels regarding the Middle East peace process -- Palestine-Israel, Syria-Israel, Lebanon-Syria, Lebanon-Israel and of course Palestine-Palestine -- should be opened. Otherwise, there will be a situation in which each party will need to watch its back, and this is not sustainable,” the diplomat said in remarks delivered ahead of US President Barack Obama's statement on the issue.

Obama, who described the deadly Gaza flotilla incident as “tragic” in a television interview on Thursday, expressed hope it could somehow provide an opening to boost Middle East peace efforts.

“I think that we need to know what all the facts are. But it's not premature to say to the Israelis and to say to the Palestinians and to say to all the parties in the region that the status quo is unsustainable,” Obama responded when asked whether he believed that “it was premature to condemn Israel.”