HURRIYET- Columnist Ferai Tinc comments on Turkey and Russia working as partners in Asia. A summary of her column is as follows:
Following the NATO summit in Rome, Prime Minister Berlusconi told a press conference that they were sending Putin and Sezer as their ambassadors to Central Asia. This statement heralded a change in mentality. NATO, trying to turn into a global security organization, charged Russia and Turkey with solving the escalating crisis between India and Pakistan. The decision was taken at a working dinner. NATO Secretary-General Lord Robertson began his speech by addressing the most important security risk on the agenda. The tension between India and Pakistan which carries the threat of a nuclear clash was discussed during the banquet. British Prime Minister Tony Blair said that he had dispatched his foreign minister to the region. Putin, speaking after him, said that he would try to bring the leaders of the two countries to the Cooperation and Confidence Building Measures Summit Conference in Asia to begin today. President Ahmet Necdet Sezer, speaking at this stage, said that he would also attend the meeting and meet with both leaders. He added that Pakistani head of state Musharraf must be seen as an encouraging example in the fight he is waging against terrorism, and India should be called on act with moderation. Following these talks, the leaders of NATO countries asked Sezer and Putin to convey NATO’s view to the Asian Security Summit to begin in Almaty. However, Sezer and Putin’s jobs won’t be that easy. India is accusing Pakistan of sheltering militants belonging to Al Qaida in Kashmir and declaring that it won’t enter into a dialogue with Pakistan unless it stops supporting the terrorists. The tension between the two neighboring countries, which have fought thrice over Kashmir since getting their independence from Britain in 1947, reached its peak with an attack on a military camp in a region under Indian control on May 14. The tension between the two countries which both have nuclear weapons carries the danger of causing great destruction in the region. Even though Pakistani head of state Musharraf says that no one could act so irresponsibly as to use nuclear weapons, the West is following the developments with concern. With a million troops are deployed on the Indian-Pakistani border, the US, the UK, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland and South Korea called their citizens back to return to their countries. Japan, Belgium and France also followed suit. The day before yesterday, the UN decided to evacuate its representatives working there. The tension is escalating. The leaders of both countries state that they do not believe the events will lead to a nuclear war, but observers who are closely following the situation predict that the situation may well get out of control. We must recall the 1962 missile crisis. Neither the US, nor the Soviet Union had thought that the circumstances would quickly bring them to the brink of a nuclear war. Today, the danger of miscalculation leading Asia to face a nuclear war cannot be dismissed. Asian security is concerning NATO more now than ever before. Turkey and Russia are opening up to Asia as partners.
SOURCE: OFFICE OF THE PRIME MINISTER, DIRECTORATE GENERAL OF PRESS AND INFORMATION