Turkey Is Very Much Still a Western Ally

In response to Soner Cagaptay's Jan. 23-25 commentary, "Is Turkey Still a Western Ally?":

I wish to underline that Turkey is located at the crossroads of important regions such as the Balkans, the Black Sea, the Caucasus, the Middle East and the Eastern Mediterranean. Following the disintegration of the Soviet Union and the rise of the AK (Justice and Development) Party in Turkish politics, Turkey began to re-engage with its immediate neighborhood and remedy an anomaly left over from the Cold War era. Turkey implemented a proactive neighborhood policy which resulted in a marked increase in our political dialogue and economic interaction with our neighbors.

Consequently, Turkey is in the process of reintegrating into its immediate environment. Mr. Cagaptay's interpretation of our neighborhood policy as evidence that Turkey is turning its back to the West is not only false but very misleading. The Turkish government is following a multidimensional foreign policy that engages with all vectors in our neighborhood. This is neither a choice nor a luxury.

Besides, Turkey's growing influence in its neighborhood has been very much welcomed by our European and American partners and has increased our strategic value to the West. Such Western appreciation became very evident during the Russian-Georgian war and the early days of the war in Gaza. Turkey's active diplomacy first addressed the humanitarian crises as well as helped facilitating a cease-fire in both cases.

We feel that it is simply absurd to question Turkey's Western credentials. Turkey began accession negotiations with the European Union under the AK Party's watch. Turkey continues to be a reliable partner in most Western initiatives. It twice held the ISAF Command in Afghanistan as a responsible NATO member and actively participated in peacekeeping operations in Bosnia, Kosovo, Somalia and elsewhere. Turkey has just begun to serve in the U.N. Security Council with the backing of 151 countries and is an important member of the G-20, which will shoulder new responsibilities in restructuring the global economic order.

In a world depressed by considerable security challenges, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan chose to be a founder of the Alliance of Civilizations initiative, which urges moderation and mutual understanding between our great cultures. Turkey's relations with Russia, Iraq, Iran and Syria should be seen within the framework of our developing neighborhood policy and not as an alternative to Turkey's Western vocation. In fact, it is Turkey's Western vocation, functioning democracy and growing economy that make it an attractive partner and inspiration for many countries in our neighborhood.

Turkey's experience with Westernization has deep roots and goes beyond centuries of Ottoman Turkish interaction with Europe. Interpreting Turkey's regional policy outreach and deepening neighborhood strategy as a major shift in orientation is not only wrong but does great injustice to the sophistication and work we put behind playing a key role in helping ease the tensions in a troubled neighborhood. The Journal's readers deserve more accurate analysis on Turkey than that of Mr. Cagaptay.

Suat Kiniklioglu
Deputy Chairman of External Affairs for the AK Party
Spokesman of the Foreign Affairs Committee in the Turkish Parliament
Ankara, Turkey