World-News

Turkey?s policy toward Iran is worth emulating
AntiWar.Com
by Ivan Eland

06/16/10

Invading on the ground would be the only way to make sure that Iran never obtained a nuclear device. After the fiasco of invading Iraq (and the continuing bog in Afghanistan), invading the larger, more mountainous, more populous, and more zealous Iran likely would be an even bigger nightmare. Even though U.S. policymakers seem to be oblivious, or at least ambivalent, to these stark realities, Iran?s neighbor Turkey is not. The Turks are of the opinion that a more cooperative approach from Iran?s neighbors might make Tehran stop short of making a bomb. In other words, Iran might feel secure enough to halt at developing technology that would enable it to construct a weapon on short notice ? much as Japan has already done...

http://tinyurl.com/2fc2xab



The next power triangle

The American Prospect
by Stephen Kinzer

06/14/10

Two Muslim nations in the Middle East have a long history of struggle for democracy. One, of course, is Turkey. Now the world?s most democratic Muslim country, it offers vivid proof that Islam and freedom can thrive side by side. It has for decades been a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and closely tied to the United States. Today, even while loosening its traditional enforcement of militant secularism, it is embarking on the most ambitious diplomatic project in its history, seeking to project power by resolving regional conflicts through dialogue and compromise. President Barack Obama chose Turkey to be the first Muslim country he visited while in office, telling the Grand National Assembly, ?Turkey?s greatness lies in your ability to be at the center of things. This is not where East and West divide. This is where they come together...

http://tinyurl.com/38hhvss



Turkish Gaullism and Turkey?s ?balancing role?

The American Conservative
by Daniel Larison

06/16/10

Thomas Friedman manages to write an entire column on the deterioration of U.S.-Turkish relations and never once mentions the Iraq war, the PKK (which has revived since the start of the Iraq war), the weak U.S. response to the flotilla raid, or the Tehran nuclear deal that he and the administration both dismissed with contempt. If we?re apportioning blame for what has encouraged Turkey on its more independent course, we can assign quite a bit to both the Bush and Obama administrations, but that is not the only thing that interests me here. Friedman passes over U.S. mistakes in silence, because this makes it easier to portray Erdogan as the sole culprit responsible for wrecking U.S.-Turkish relations and it helps the misleading ?the Islamists are coming!? narrative take hold...

http://tinyurl.com/2fjubu9


Informant: Thomas L. Knapp

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Turkey set to freeze ties with Israel: report

A Turkish newspaper reported on Wednesday that Turkey would halt military cooperation with Israel and not send back the ambassador it withdrew after a deadly Israeli commando operation to stop a Gaza aid convoy.

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE65F4ZP20100616



Israel refuses to withdraw Ambassador to Turkey

Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon said that Israel will not respond to Turkey's demand that it recall its ambassador to Ankara. Interviewed by Kol Yisrael government radio, the former ambassador to the United States said "the intentions of someone making such demands are not good."

http://www.panarmenian.net/eng/world/news/50183/



Knesset to hold session on Armenian genocide

On Wednesday, several U.S. congressmen from both parties announced that they were reconsidering their own positions on whether Turkey's treatment of the Armenians during World War I should be labeled genocide. At a press conference, the congressmen expressed concern over Ankara's deepening ties with Iran at the expense of those with its traditional ally Israel.

http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/knesset-to-hold-session-on-armenian-genocide-1.296894



US: Turkey must show commitment

The United States is warning Turkey that it is alienating US supporters and needs to demonstrate its commitment to partnership with the West.

http://www.jpost.com/International/Article.aspx?id=179570



We will not apologize to Turkey over Gaza flotilla killings

Top official in Foreign Ministry says Turkish demand for an official apology was mainly an excuse to allow Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's to cut diplomatic ties with Israel.

http://tinyurl.com/34a9lba



Turkey closes skies to Israeli military

Amid tense relations prompted by Israel's deadly attack on a Turkish-flagged aid convoy, the government in Ankara takes a step to impose certain restrictive measures against the Israeli military.

http://presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=132364&sectionid=351020204



Gaza aid victims shot more than once - report

The examinations carried out in Turkey found five of the nine died from bullet wounds to the head and that the nine volunteers were shot a total of 31 times. One of the lawyers for the families of the victims, Yasin Divrak, says the findings make it clear the Israeli forces shot to kill the activists.

http://www.radioaustralia.net.au/international/2010-06-30/gaza-aid-victims-shot-more-than-once-report/189512



Further Proof Emerges of Turkey s Genocide

By Robert Fisk

The Turks are preparing to smother the 100th anniversary of their Holocaust against the Christian Armenians of the Ottoman Empire in 1915.

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article36525.htm


From Information Clearing House

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P5+1 consensus on Iran breaks down as EU approves harsher sanctions
http://www.ufppc.org/us-a-world-news-mainmenu-35/9741/

Congress votes new Iran sanctions and new reporting req'ts for US president
http://www.ufppc.org/us-a-world-news-mainmenu-35/9759/

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We Have Lost Our Way

Julia Chaitin Ph.D., Truthout: "I have been trying to get my head around what happened on the Gaza flotilla, with no success. When I turned on the Israeli news at 6:40 AM on Monday morning, knowing that the flotilla must be nearing our shores, the broadcaster's first words were a knife to the heart: 'Something very bad has happened. The commanders knew ahead of time that this was a lose-lose situation ...' I could not help but wonder why the naval commanders (and obviously the higher-ups in the government) would knowingly go into a situation that was 'lose-lose.'"

http://www.truth-out.org/we-have-lost-our-way60363

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Turkey, America, and Empire's Twilight
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2010/06/25-8

Turkey Bans Israeli Military Fight from Its Airspace as Freeze Deepens
http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2010/06/29-3

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Former Marine talks about attack on Gaza relief ships
http://www.brasschecktv.com/page/881.html



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