BY YALCIN DOGAN
HURRIYET- There were two separate meetings this week where Russia wasn't even mentioned, but its unspoken presence dominated them. Two days ago, during a Turkish-US meeting, Ankara was thinking of Russia. At the second meeting, between Turkish and Turkmenistan, Turkmenistan was also thinking about Russia, and so it couldn't give a clear answer to Ankara. In the space of a few hours, Ankara first welcomed US Vice President Dick Cheney and then Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdimuhammedov. During these two meetings, Russia was never mentioned, but its shadow loomed large.
On Monday, Ankara was as if covered by fog. When Chenney was coming to Ankara, he told US television reporters that he had seen `Kurdistan.' As soon as he arrived, he insisted that we should put radar there. In his eyes, this radar would help guard against a possible international ballistic missile (ICBM) strike from Iran or North Korea. The earlier radar detects a missile launch, the more time there is to destroy the missile in the air. Putting radar in Turkey is among the US' priorities.
It's also trying to install radar in Poland, Romania and Kosovo. If the US does this in Turkey too, this would be a relief to Washington. This is supposedly about Iran and North Korea, but the move makes Moscow uncomfortable. We have nothing to do with ICBMs. What worries us are missiles with a range of 300 to 1,500 kilometers. This is the technical reason, but actually concerns about disturbing Russia influenced Ankara's decision. Ankara doesn't want missiles put there, and the vice president didn't find what he expected in `Kurdistan.'
A few hours later, Ankara met with Berdimuhammedov and felt good about rejecting the US' radar proposal. Ankara wants to discuss energy projects with Turkmenistan, but Berdimuhammedov isn't ready for this for now. He's thinking of Russia and doesn't want to disturb his giant neighbor. Why would Russia be disturbed if Turkmenistan and Turkey develop closer energy ties? We should wait for the cards to be dealt.