Word: ankara
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: all
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...Both Washington and Ankara seem ready to start over. Both see Turkey playing an important role in regional issues, from Syrian-Israeli peace talks to oil and gas security in the Caucasus and the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq. "Under Bush, Ankara and Washington were divided on many fronts," says Sahin Alpay, politics professor at Bahcesehir University in Istanbul. "With Obama, they are moving closer together on all of these...
...foreign policy. Turkey currently maintains about 900 soldiers in Afghanistan as part of the NATO contingent there, and, as the only Muslim country involved, its presence is crucial to securing support on the ground. Obama is expected to push for an increase in Turkish forces and to ask for Ankara's help in facilitating a smooth withdrawal from Iraq...
...roses though. Dividing his time between the capital Ankara, where he will address Turkish MPs, and Istanbul, where he is to meet with religious leaders and youths, Obama is also expected to deliver a message urging Turkey to embrace further democratic reforms and to refocus on its long-term goal of joining the European Union. Movement towards membership of the E.U. has stalled, both because of European leaders' unwillingness to contemplate a future with Turkey, and the current government's Islamic leanings, which have led it to turn eastwards and greater involvement with the Middle East. "The United States must...
...Ankara, Obama will also hear from opposition leaders, including the country's only legal Kurdish party, whom the government refuses to engage with to address the grievances of the large and restive Kurdish minority based mostly in the southeast. Kurdish lawmakers say they will speak to the president about ending the conflict with the militant Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which spills over into Iraq and is potentially destabilizing for the region, and more regional autonomy...
...mass killings of Armenians by Ottoman Turkish forces as a genocide, a term Turkey rejects. While campaigning, Obama said he would recognize the killings as genocide but has given no sign that he will raise the issue while here. He may be helped by the fact that Ankara is quietly working to normalize relations with Armenia and is expected to re-open its border shortly. That announcement could be made during the Obama visit...