Word: turkeys
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...Turkey is the only country in the region with strong military and economic ties to Israel, which supplies Ankara with defense equipment estimated at $100 million annually. The two countries also have a long-established relationship of intelligence cooperation. So, though Erdogan lambasted Israel's Gaza attacks as a "crime against humanity," he also affirmed that long-term relations between the two countries would not suffer...
...Ahmet Davutoglu, Turkey's chief foreign policy architect and Erdogan's top adviser, summarized Turkey's new strategy as "zero problems with its neighbors." The reclusive Davutoglu wrote last year: "A central country with such an optimal geographic location cannot define itself in a defensive manner. It should be seen neither as a bridge country, which only connects two points, nor a frontier country, nor indeed as an ordinary country, which sits at the edge of the Muslim world or the West...
...others see such relations as key to a mediation role. "There can be no peace without Hamas," says political commentator Sahin Alpay. "So it's now clear that Turkey's decision to talk to all sides in the region, including Hamas, will have a positive payoff. By building itself up as a regional powerhouse who can talk to all parties, Turkey is actually enhancing its credibility in the eyes of the E.U. and U.S. It's making itself more indispensable...
...area in which Turkey can contribute is by providing troops for a peacekeeping force in the Gaza Strip, where Western monitors might face hostility on the ground. "The military contribution is important," said the Western official. "Turkey has done a good job as part of military contingents in Lebanon and Afghanistan. Their ability to talk to all sides in the conflict [in Gaza] means they have real credibility, and as a NATO member they have a professional military, so [they] are well placed to be effective...
...cease-fire agreement between Israel and Hamas and have offered to commit troops. Ankara has also offered its services to incoming U.S. President Barack Obama to act as a mediator between the U.S. and Iran. "If Obama pursues new policies in the Middle East, as is expected, Turkey could be a key supporting partner in building peace," says Alpay. Which is just how the Ottoman pashas of old would have...