TURKEY

TULIN DALOGLU, Washington Correspondent, Star TV, March 5, 2003
CZIKOWSKY: What are the internal political risks the Turkish government faces if it allows American troops to invade from Turkey? What would the proposed American economic assistance do for the Turkish economy, and how do the Turkish people view this offer?
DALOGLU: Most political analysts do suspect that the party in power has lost a lot. There are some U.S. analysts who suggest that this is actually a strategic game played by the secularists against the Islamists. They say as the military kept silent and did not show any direction to the people, it let the whole responsibility to the shoulders of Justice and Development Party. And the Turkish public opinion is 98% against a war with Iraq. So, with this circumstance, the analysts say that any decision against the will of the people will let the party in power lose. Still, today, top military General spoke for the first time in support of the ruling party’s position and the deployment of the U.S. soldiers in Turkey. So, in the end, Justice and Development Party can be a big winner. We all need to see these developments as they unfold.

OMAR TASPINAR, Visiting Fellow, Brookings Institution, March 7, 2003
CZIKOWSKY: Presumably, most Turkish government officials do not wish to see a Kurdish state established bordering them. Yet, if they refuse to cooperate with American military requests, don’t they lost leverage in requesting American assistance in preventing the creation of a Kurdish state? On the other hand, if they agree with American requests, do these officials face reprisals from the Turkish people, most of whom oppose a war with Iraq?
TASPINAR: That’s exactly the dilemma faced by Ankara. A healthy balance would be to explain to the Turkish public opinion that there is nothing Turkey can do to stop a war in Iraq. And that our national interest dictates a pragmatic yes to U.S. troops.

IRAKLY ARESHIDZE, political analyst, February 24, 2004
CZIKOWSKY: How is Turkey reacting to event in Georgia, and how does the future of Georgia-Turkey relations appear?
ARESHIDZE: Turkey is a key Georgian ally. It is playing a very big role in helping to reform the Georgian army, along with the United States, it is providing a great deal of financial assistance to Georgia, and it is a key partner in the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline. But, Turkey’s business elite has a lot of problems with the new leadership, at least had them in the past. There was a major problem with the Turkish investment in the Georgian cell phone provider Geo Cell (Turk Cell was the investor) that was kicked out of the country (with some very shady ways) by the current Prosecutor General; I was in college when this happened, and so do not have as many details as I would like, I must say. As a result, Turkey has been cautious; the same has been the case with Azerbaijan, who usually takes its lead from Turkey. All that said, I am sure Turkey will maintain a close relationship with Georgia, but I do not know if it will be a special relationship that Georgia needs.

NINA CHAUDRY, PBS Producer, August 23 2006
CZIKOWSKY: Have there been any strong religious objections voice over these new fashions (as shown in the film “Turkey’s Tigers”) or are religious groups tolerate of them?
CHAUDRY: Some people have criticized Tekbir for having women model his clothing and for exploiting his faith for the purpose of his business. Though Tekbir clearly has strong support that allows the company to expand.

MARK PARRIS, former U.S. Ambassador to Turkey, July 20, 2007
CZIKOWSKY: How would you compare the operations of the unicameral legislative branch in Turkey to the mostly bicameral legislatures and Congress that exist in the United States? Does legislation pass more quickly and is it scrutinized as thoroughly? What differences do you see?
PARRIS: Turkey’s system, like other parliamentary systems, has its advantages and disadvantages in terms of efficiency and checks and balances.
When a single party has a clear majority (or, as in the case of Turkey’s constitution, a super-majority) a unicameral body can make decisions faster and more decisively than would be the case where concurrence of a second body is necessary. In such a system other than institutions (in Turkey’s case, primarily the President, Constitutional Court, and, some would argue, the military) tend to play the check and balance role. Indeed the current elections were triggered by an April crisis when it appeared the ruling party would gain control of the Presidency.