Istanbul, Turkey – Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is travelling to ny City, knowing he has been dealt a promising hand for improving ties with the US because of developments in Afghanistan.
At the beginning of the year, then prospective US Secretary of State Antony Blinken derided Ankara as a “so-called” partner to the us over
Fast-forward to last month – after the Taliban took the Afghan capital before the US withdrawal – and Blinken tweeted that Turkey was “an important NATO ally and a useful partner within the region”.
The drastic change in tone offers Erdogan quite a glimmer of hope that relations with Washington – for several years blighted by a seemingly inexhaustible litany of disputes – might be salvageable as he travels on Sunday to attend the
“The only difference in Erdogan’s policy goes back to a gathering with [US President Joe] Biden at which he convinced him that Turkey could play a much bigger role in Afghanistan,” said Emre Caliskan, research fellow at the London-based policy Centre.
Erdogan first suggested Turkey’s role to safeguard Kabul airport to Biden at a NATO summit in June.
Ozgur Unluhisarcikli, director of the German Marshall Fund in Ankara, added that Erdogan would use “Afghanistan as a showcase, that really Turkey and therefore the US share interests on variety of issues, which the US also benefits from cooperation with Turkey.
“Ankara sees this as a subject that proves that the West still needs Turkey, or the West still benefits from cooperation with Turkey.”
While Erdogan’s trip to ny is principally to attend the overall Assembly, a gathering with Biden would be a chance for the newest reset in US-Turkey ties.
After Biden came to office in January, he waited three months before chatting with Erdogan because the new White House displayed its ire at Turkey’s purchase of
The fallout centres on Washington’s insistence that the Russian system is incompatible with NATO’s defences and specifically that it could gather secrets about the F-35, a next-generation fighter jet that Turkey had been a part of developing.
The acquisition of S-400s saw Turkey began the fighter programme in 2019 and US sanctions were later imposed on senior Turkish defence officials.
The row adds to other disputes between the 2 states.
Turkey is unhappy with US support for Kurdish fighters in northeast Syria it says are tied to the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK, which has waged a 37-year battle for Kurdish rights against Turkey that has killed tens of thousands.
It also demands the extradition of Fethullah Gulen, accused by Ankara of masterminding a 2016 coup attempt, who has lived within the US for quite 20 years. Gulen denies the accusations against him.
Washington, meanwhile, has been critical of Turkey’s human rights record, although there are few signs of Biden completing his promise to place this issue at the centre of his policy .
More important for the US is Turkey’s prolonged flirtation with Russia, most clearly encapsulated within the S-400 issue.
Last month, a Russian arms export official said Turkey was on the brink of committing to receive a second batch of S-400s, something that might likely provoke further US sanctions against Ankara.