BY YILMAZ OZTUNA
TURKIYE)- Today Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan begins his visit to the United States. As the Washington Post writes, the two sides are meeting with the aim and hope of renewing their strategic alliance.
Will this aim and hope be translated into true political resolve? We shall see. In my view it must be so, because both sides will gain countless advantages from this.
A flood of vetoes and ‘no’ referendums has begun in Europe. The European Union needs at least a couple of months to solve its problems. Within this time, the United States’ weight – which is already strong enough – will grow even clearer. The counterarguments don’t hold water, because they are unable to grasp the future.
Britain, a country with a very subtle diplomacy, has started moving even closer to the US than it already is. It will probably decide against holding a referendum. If I’m not mistaken, holding referendums for the European Union constitution is the idea of French President Jacques Chirac. Presenting something to the public rather than to Parliament has precedents in French history. However Chirac knows very well that such referendums are controlled.
Now Bush and Erdogan will meet at the White House. It’s up to them to see how much they can heal the damage in bilateral relations. Both sides must negotiate in light of the future.
Otherwise rogue states will take advantage of this situation. Uncontrolled missiles will fly through the skies, and they could accidentally land in populated areas. This must be carefully considered.
We agree with the Washington Post that the meeting between Bush and Erdogan is of historic importance and invaluable in terms of deciding which course to adopt.