This is certainly good news for Washington. The reason is simple. The Kurdish problem has been the most important issue poisoning Turkish-US relations and the persistently negative image of the US in Turkey. Despite the claims of some Turkish pundits in Washington that Turkish anti-Americanism is fueled by the rise of Islam and conservatism, US officials familiar with Turkey know that the real reason fueling a negative perception of Washington is the strongly held belief that the United States wants an independent Kurdish state in Iraq and thus foments Kurdish nationalism in the region. Sixty percent of Turks, according to recent opinion polls, believe that Washington and Europe are enemies of Turkey and that they are helping the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK). As I said, this is the perception and not the reality. But in international relations, as well as in human and social psychology, “perception is reality.”
This is why any attempt of the Turkish government to recognize that there is a Kurdish problem with domestic roots in Turkey and that a solution to the root causes of the Kurdish problem requires more democratization, as Minister of Interior Beşir Atalay emphasized last week, is good news for the United States. This is good news for Washington for an additional reason having to do with Turkey's regional ambition to play a high-profile mediation role in the Middle East and beyond. US officials are very familiar with the vision and narrative of the Justice and Development Party's (AKP) foreign policy, now under the direction of Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu. This vision puts Turkey at the center of major regional issues and promotes the geostrategic and political importance of Turkey as the only country that can talk to conflicting parts with a regional voice and historic experience. As a result, the Turkish government believes it is playing a very effective role in mediating between Israel and Syria, Afghanistan and Pakistan, Hamas and Fatah, Sunni Iraqis and Shiite Iraqis, Russia and Georgia, etc.
Washington is certainly appreciative of this Turkish vision and effort. It is also willing to support it when necessary. However, there is also a sense among US officials that this regional vision and ambition of Turkey takes away time and intellectual energy from Turkey's own foreign and domestic problems. In other words, there is a certain belief in Washington that Turkey should focus a bit more on solving its own major problems instead of spending so much time and energy on other countries' issues. The list of domestic issues Turkey could focus on is long. It starts with the Kurdish question, but it certainly does not end there. The normalization of relations with Armenia, the Cyprus question, more EU reforms and the democratization of civilian-military relations are additional areas where Washington would like to see a more engaged and forthcoming Turkish government.
Turkey's current verbal commitment to solve the Kurdish problem is a step in the right direction for Washington precisely because it shows that Ankara has at least some willingness and courage to focus on its own most crucial problem. US officials hope that with more democratization and specifically with more openings on Kurdish cultural rights, the PKK will lose political support. This, in turn, will pave the way for more peaceful Kurdish alternatives and political movements. It is with the same spirit that Washington has been supportive of improved relations between Ankara and the Kurdish Regional Government in Iraq.
However, one should not expect Washington to speak out loudly in favor of the AKP's Kurdish policy. There will be silence on these sensitive domestic issues and particularly on the need for an amnesty and rehabilitation program for PKK militants willing to lay down their arms. The reason is simple. The Obama administration is a strong believer in realpolitik. As it has shown this trait with its measured reaction to events in Iran, the new US administration does not want to interfere in sensitive areas such as human rights and democracy, the way the Bush administration's “freedom agenda” did in the Middle East between 2003 and 2005. The last thing the Obama administration wants is to provide ammunition to those who are willing to see an American conspiracy behind every effort at democratization. Given the persistent anti-Americanism in Turkey, Washington will do its best to maintain a low profile while Turks discuss their own Kurdish problem.
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