Europe not warm to religious tones
Güncelleme Tarihi:
Hürriyet Daily News
Oluşturulma Tarihi: Nisan 10, 2009 00:00
ANKARA - The Turkish government's growing emphasis on ’religion’ in current foreign policy matters has led to discontent in the European Union. Some members of the EU are more critical, which has disturbed Ankara. The criticism is said to be dangerous by the president Abdullah Gül
The Turkish government's growing emphasis on "religion" in current foreign policy matters has led to discontent among EU member states. This runs counter to the positive winds brought by the landmark trip of U.S. President Barack Obama early this week.
While here, Obama hailed Turkey as a country that straddled East and West adopting Western values and having predominantly Muslim population. Turkey annoyed its European allies when it threatened to the appointment of former Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen as head of NATO because of his refusal to apologize during the 2006 crisis over the publication of cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed in a Danish newspaper.
Blackmail concern
In an interview published in Thursday’s Financial Times, President Abdullah Gül said criticism of his country over its objections to the appointment of NATO's new chief was dangerous. Gül said the criticism worried him. "We neither engaged in blackmail nor did we have an irrational request. We acted in a rational, logical and in a modern way within the compromise which is European culture. And indeed in the end we came to an understanding. Therefore, I am surprised to see comments of that nature coming from certain countries. I don't find it terribly in line with the European spirit."
France and Germany had strongly backed Rasmussen. European Union Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn and French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner had criticized the way Turkey acted. Ankara, which aspires to join the EU, backed down only after Obama offered promises that one of NATO Secretary-General Rasmussen’s assistants would be Turkish. Kouchner said he was "very shocked" by Ankara’s behavior at the NATO summit early this month and expressed concerns over Turkey’s evolution toward a "strengthened religion, a secularism that is less emphasized," he was quoted as saying by RTL radio. He further added Turkey had been, "to say the least, clumsy," in bringing up the issue of the Mohammed cartoons.
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan earlier said he was personally against Rasmussen’s bid for NATO’s top job because, he added, Turkey’s President Abdullah Gül said religion should not be highlighted in foreign policy issues, sparking concerns over an inner rift at the top of the state. Gül emphasized in subsequent remarks, however, that Turkey’s policy was "unanimous."
Growing European concerns over Turkey could be tied to the approaching European parliamentary elections in June, followed in September by Germany’s general election. Opposition to Turkey pays to tap into popular suspicion of Turkey’s EU credentials, which is particularly strong among conservative and far-right voters.
Another EU expert, Can Baydarol, of Istanbul’s Bilgi University, however, said Turkey was right in its opposition to Rasmussen, but added it might have done so more quietly, more diplomatically, behind the scenes.
"For years Turkey asked the EU to participate in the economic and social development movements when it was made up of military organizations. The EU replied to Turkey that EU and NATO were different organizations. But now they put the two in the same pot," he added.
Baydarol stressed what has to be discussed ahead of any notion of Turkey drifting away from secularism was Rasmussen’s identity. "NATO and Rasmussen’s main assignment as secretary-general will be Afghanistan, a Muslim country facing the reality of the Taliban. How will he fulfill his task?" he asked.
The affects of clumsy politics
"Prime Minister Erdoğan's opposition to the candidacy of Rasmussen for the secretary general of NATO had actually disturbed many members of EU. This clumsy politics negatively affected the point of view of EU countries, even those close to Turkey. Instead of strategic scales, using the religious argument and having an attitude against the freedom of expression, changed most of the Europeans' attitudes, especially Oli Rehn's, toward Turkey," Cengiz Aktar, an EU expert, told the Hürriyet Daily News & Economic Review.
"I think Turkish government enters a 'dream world' in which it prefers the United States to the EU. But it is wrong because the U.S. is not an alternative to the EU and also the U.S. tells Turkey to be more democratic, improve the reforms, to be at peace with its neighbors, give rights to minorities, etc.," he said. Aktar argued that Turkey was seen as announcer for Islam during the crisis over the next NATO chief.
While here, Obama hailed Turkey as a country that straddled East and West adopting Western values and having predominantly Muslim population. Turkey annoyed its European allies when it threatened to the appointment of former Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen as head of NATO because of his refusal to apologize during the 2006 crisis over the publication of cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed in a Danish newspaper.
Blackmail concern
In an interview published in Thursday’s Financial Times, President Abdullah Gül said criticism of his country over its objections to the appointment of NATO's new chief was dangerous. Gül said the criticism worried him. "We neither engaged in blackmail nor did we have an irrational request. We acted in a rational, logical and in a modern way within the compromise which is European culture. And indeed in the end we came to an understanding. Therefore, I am surprised to see comments of that nature coming from certain countries. I don't find it terribly in line with the European spirit."
France and Germany had strongly backed Rasmussen. European Union Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn and French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner had criticized the way Turkey acted. Ankara, which aspires to join the EU, backed down only after Obama offered promises that one of NATO Secretary-General Rasmussen’s assistants would be Turkish. Kouchner said he was "very shocked" by Ankara’s behavior at the NATO summit early this month and expressed concerns over Turkey’s evolution toward a "strengthened religion, a secularism that is less emphasized," he was quoted as saying by RTL radio. He further added Turkey had been, "to say the least, clumsy," in bringing up the issue of the Mohammed cartoons.
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan earlier said he was personally against Rasmussen’s bid for NATO’s top job because, he added, Turkey’s President Abdullah Gül said religion should not be highlighted in foreign policy issues, sparking concerns over an inner rift at the top of the state. Gül emphasized in subsequent remarks, however, that Turkey’s policy was "unanimous."
Growing European concerns over Turkey could be tied to the approaching European parliamentary elections in June, followed in September by Germany’s general election. Opposition to Turkey pays to tap into popular suspicion of Turkey’s EU credentials, which is particularly strong among conservative and far-right voters.
Another EU expert, Can Baydarol, of Istanbul’s Bilgi University, however, said Turkey was right in its opposition to Rasmussen, but added it might have done so more quietly, more diplomatically, behind the scenes.
"For years Turkey asked the EU to participate in the economic and social development movements when it was made up of military organizations. The EU replied to Turkey that EU and NATO were different organizations. But now they put the two in the same pot," he added.
Baydarol stressed what has to be discussed ahead of any notion of Turkey drifting away from secularism was Rasmussen’s identity. "NATO and Rasmussen’s main assignment as secretary-general will be Afghanistan, a Muslim country facing the reality of the Taliban. How will he fulfill his task?" he asked.
The affects of clumsy politics
"Prime Minister Erdoğan's opposition to the candidacy of Rasmussen for the secretary general of NATO had actually disturbed many members of EU. This clumsy politics negatively affected the point of view of EU countries, even those close to Turkey. Instead of strategic scales, using the religious argument and having an attitude against the freedom of expression, changed most of the Europeans' attitudes, especially Oli Rehn's, toward Turkey," Cengiz Aktar, an EU expert, told the Hürriyet Daily News & Economic Review.
"I think Turkish government enters a 'dream world' in which it prefers the United States to the EU. But it is wrong because the U.S. is not an alternative to the EU and also the U.S. tells Turkey to be more democratic, improve the reforms, to be at peace with its neighbors, give rights to minorities, etc.," he said. Aktar argued that Turkey was seen as announcer for Islam during the crisis over the next NATO chief.