Abstract
This chapter explores how Turkish perceptions of the US and bilateral relations during the two terms of the Obama administration were molded in relation to certain issues of contention. The primary focus is on the Turkish government’s policymaking, conceptions of and approach to its relations with the US. In addition, the Turkish public’s reactions and understandings of the US during the Obama administration are explored. The chapter contends that throughout Obama’s two terms there has been a shift in Turkish perceptions of Turkey–US relations. High hopes and expectations of both the political elites and the general public gave way to disillusionment and a major split in matters of utmost importance to Turkey. Overall, the Obama period did not produce a dramatic change in general Turkish perceptions of the US, and Turkish perceptions of bilateral relations continue to be defined through a security lens, as has been all along.
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Notes
- 1.
See, for example, “Amerikan Rüyası: Bir siyah milyonların oyuyla Baskan seçildi” (American Dream: A Blackman Has Been Chosen as the President Receiving the Votes of Millions), Radikal, November 6, 2008, and Ali H Aslan, “Amerika‘değisimi’ seçti” (America Chose Change), Zaman, November 6, 2008.
- 2.
Cengiz Çandar, “Yes, we can: Đnsanlığın zafer gecesi!” (Yes, We Can: Humanities Night of Victory), Radikal, November 6, 2008.
- 3.
Cüneyt Ülsever, “Amerikan Seçimleri (III)” (American Elections III), Hürriyet, November 6, 2008.
- 4.
Ertuğrul Özkök, “Bir Kürtü seçer miydiniz” (Would You Have Voted for a Kurd), Hürriyet, November 6, 2008.
- 5.
Soli Özel, “Siyah derili Baskan” (Black-Skinned President), Sabah, November 6, 2008.
- 6.
“Turkish President Congratulates Obama over US Election Victory,” May 11, 2008. Accessed November 10, 2016 http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-11/05/content_10313454.htm
- 7.
“Obama Presidency: A New Era in Turkish-American Relations?” November 7, 2008. Accessed September 28, 2016. http://www.jamestown.org/edm/article.php?article_id=2373517
- 8.
Ramazan Gözen, “Turkish-American Relations in 2009,” Perceptions 15, no. 3–4 (2010): 56.
- 9.
“Obama Sevinci Hız Kesmiyor” (The Joy for Obama Does Not Decelerate), November 14, 2008. Accessed December 12, 2016. http://www.haberler.com/obama-sevinci-hiz-kesmiyor-haberi/
- 10.
“Turkey Rejects US Troop Proposal,” March 2, 2003. Accessed September 8, 2016. http://edition.cnn.com/2003/WORLD/meast/03/01/sprj.irq.main/
- 11.
Barack Obama, Remarks to the Grand National Assembly of Turkey in Ankara, April 6, 2009. Accessed September 13, 2016. http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/index.php?pid=85972&st=turkey&st1=
- 12.
For a detailed assessment of Turkish-Soviet relations from post-World War I until the aftermath of World War II, see Kamuran Gürün, Türk-Sovyet İlişkileri: 1920–1953 (Ankara: Türk Tarih Kurumu Basımevi, 1991).
- 13.
On containment policy, see for example, John Lewis Gaddis, Strategies of Containment: A Critical Appraisal of Postwar American National Security Policy (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1982). For a comprehensive analysis of Turkish-American relations during and after World War II, see Haluk Ülman, Türk-Amerikan Diplomatik Münasebetleri: 1939–1947 (Ankara: Sevinç, 1961).
- 14.
Mehmet Gönlübol, “Turkey and NATO: An Overall Appraisal,” The Turkish Yearbook of International Relations, XI, (1971), 3. Accessed August 10, 2016. http://www.politics.ankara.edu.tr/dergi/tybook/11/Mehmet_Gonlubol.pdf
- 15.
Quoted in Şuhnaz Yılmaz, “Turkey’s Quest for NATO Membership: The Institutionalization of the Turkish–American Alliance,” Southeast European and Black Sea Studies 12, no. 4 (2012): 483.
- 16.
Nur Bilge Criss, “Türkiye-NATO İttifakının Tarihsel Boyutu” (Historical Dimension of Turkey-NATO Alliance), Uluslararası İlişkiler 9, no. 34 (2012): 14.
- 17.
On Turkey’s involvement in the Korean War, see George S. Harris, Troubled Alliance; Turkish-American Problems in Historical Perspective, 1945–1971 (Washington, DC: American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research, 1972): 39–40.
- 18.
Within the context of the Cuban Missile crisis of 1962, the Kennedy administration secretly agreed with the Soviet Union to remove the Jupiter missiles deployed in Turkey with no prior consultation with Turkey. Since for Turkey these missiles represented the main security guarantee, this secret agreement caused vast disappointment and led to the rise of anti-Americanism among the Turkish public.
- 19.
When the Johnson administration held that the majority of the drugs that American youth were addicted to were coming from Turkey, the US pressured Turkey to limit its opium production and later to ban it completely during the late 1960s and early 1970s. Although the issue turned out to be a major controversy, it was eventually dropped from the US agenda after the Turkish intervention in Cyprus in 1974 and the following US arms embargo on Turkey.
- 20.
Turkey indicated its intention to intervene in Cyprus on the basis of the 1960 Treaty of Guarantee when the conditions of the Turkish Cypriots worsened as a result of a communal rift between the Turkish and the Greek Cypriots. President Johnson, however, warned Turkey that neither NATO nor the US would defend Turkey if the Soviets attacked Turkey as a result of possible Turkish intervention in Cyprus. In his letter, Johnson also stated that no American-supplied military equipment could be used in such an intervention. The infamous Johnson letter represents a breaking point in the Turkish psyche regarding the reliability of the US as an ally.
- 21.
US House of Representatives and Senate, Legislation on Foreign Relations Through 1979: Current Legislation and Related Executive Orders: Vol. 1 (Washington: USGPO, 1980), 113.
- 22.
For the issue of Cyprus in Turkey-US relations, see Nasuh Uslu, Türk-Amerikan İlişkilerinde Kıbrıs (Cyprus in Turkish-American Relations) (Ankara: Yüzyıl Yayınları, 2000), 21. Accessed August 28, 2016. http://dergiler.ankara.edu.tr/dergiler/44/1569/17034.pdf
- 23.
Turkey and the US signed the Defense and Economic Cooperation Agreement in March 1980. See Nasuh Uslu, “The Cooperation Amid Problems: Turkish-American Relations in the 1980s,” The Turkish Yearbook, 1997, 14–16. Accessed July 27, 2016. http://dergiler.ankara.edu.tr/dergiler/44/1569/17034.pdf
- 24.
Aylin Güney, “An Anatomy of the Transformation of the US-Turkish Alliance: From ‘Cold War’ to ‘War on Iraq,’” Turkish Studies 6, no. 3 (2005): 345.
- 25.
Ibid., 346.
- 26.
Milliyet, January 15, 2007. Accessed August 3, 2016. http://www.milliyet.com.tr/2007/01/15/siyaset/asiy.html
- 27.
Pew Global Attitudes Project, Global Public Opinion in the Bush Years (2001–2008), December 18, 2008. Accessed September 12, 2016. http://www.pewglobal.org/2008/12/18/global-public-opinion-in-the-bush-years-2001-2008/
- 28.
PEW Global Attitudes Survey, Global Unease with Major World Powers, June 27, 2007. Accessed September 12, 2016. http://www.pewglobal.org/2007/06/27/global-unease-with-major-world-powers
- 29.
For changes in Turkish foreign policy orientation under the AKP, see Zeynep Arkan and Müge Kınacıoğlu, “Enabling ‘Ambitious Activism’: Davutoğlu’s Vision of a New Foreign Policy Identity for Turkey,” Turkish Studies 17, no. 3 (2016) and C. Akça Ataç, “A Comparative Civilizational Reading for the Middle East and Turkey’s New Role in It,” Global Change, Peace & Security 28, no. 1 (2016).
- 30.
Barack Obama, The President’s News Conference with President Abdullah Gul of Turkey in Ankara, Turkey, April 6, 2009. Accessed September 24, 2016. http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/?pid=85974
- 31.
Ibid.
- 32.
İbrahim Kalın, “US-Turkish Relations Under Obama: Promise, Challenge and Opportunity in the 21st Century,” Journal of Balkan and Near Eastern Studies 12, no. 1 (2010): 93.
- 33.
“Davutoğlu Expects Obama Message to Muslims to Change ‘Atmosphere,’” Today’s Zaman, June 3, 2009.
- 34.
“Model partnership with US necessity rather than preference,” Today’s Zaman, April 6, 2009.
- 35.
Stephen J. Flanagan, “The United States and Turkey: A Model Partnership,” Statement before the House Committee of Foreign Affairs, Subcommittee of European Affairs. Accessed October 8, 2016. https://csis-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/s3fs-public/legacy_files/files/attachments/ts090514_flanagan.pdf
- 36.
Ibid.
- 37.
Ramazan Gözen, “Turkish-American Relations in 2009,” Perceptions 15, no. 3–4 (2010): 49.
- 38.
Nuh Yılmaz, “US-Turkey Relations: Model Partnership as an ‘Empty Signifier,’” Insight Turkey 13, no. 1 (2011): 20.
- 39.
Ahmet K. Han, “From ‘Strategic Partnership’ to ‘Model Partnership’: AKP, Turkish-US Relations and The Prospects under Obama,” UNISCI Discussion Papers, no. 23 (2010): 99.
- 40.
Ahmet Davutoğlu, “Turkey-US Relations: A Model Partnership, Global and Regional Dimensions,” Speech Delivered by the Minister of Foreign Affairs H.E. Ahmet Davutoğlu at the 28th Annual Conference on US-Turkish Relations Organized by ATC-DEIK, June 2, 2009, Washington, DC. Accessed November 2, 2016. http://www.mfa.gov.tr/minster_s-speechat-the-28th-annual-conference-on-us-turkish-relations.en.mfa
- 41.
Ibid.
- 42.
Remarks by President Obama and Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan, December 7, 2009. Accessed November 3, 2016. http://iipdigital.usembassy.gov/st/english/texttrans/2009/12/20091207165350xjsnommis0.3207056.html#axzz4arggH1by
- 43.
Robert Tait, “Iran Is Our Friend, Says Turkish PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan,” The Guardian, October 26, 2009. Accessed December 2, 2016. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2009/oct/26/turkey-iran1
- 44.
For a detailed overview of the Iranian nuclear issue, see, Aylin Gürzel, “Turkey’s Role in Defusing the Iranian Nuclear Issue,” The Washington Quarterly 35, no. 3 (2012).
- 45.
For the text of the Joint Declaration, see http://www.mfa.gov.tr/17_05_2010-joint-declaration-of-the-ministers-of-foreign-affairs-of-turkey_-iran-and-brazil_.en.mfa (accessed August 23, 2016).
- 46.
Julian Borger, “Iran-Turkey Nuclear Swap Deal ‘Means New Sanctions Are Unnecessary,’” The Guardian, May 17, 2010. Accessed September 23, 2016. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2010/may/17/iran-nuclear-uranium-swap-turkey
- 47.
UN Security Council Resolution No. 1929, S/RES/1929/2010, June 9, 2010.
- 48.
Quoted in Sabri Sayarı, “New Directions in Turkey-USA Relations,” Journal of Balkan and New Eastern Studies 15, no. 2 (2013): 133.
- 49.
“Malatya Set to Host Missile Shield Radar,” Hürriyet Daily News, September 14, 2011. Accessed September 7, 2016. www.hurriyetdailynews.com/default.aspx?pageid=438&n=malatya-set-to-host-missile-shield-radar-2011-09-14Hürriyet Daily News.
- 50.
Quoted in Jim Zanotti and Clayton Thomas, Turkey: Background and U.S. Relations, U.S. Congressional Research Service, August 26, 2016, 22.
- 51.
Remarks by President Obama and Prime Minister Erdogan of Turkey before Bilateral Meeting, September 20, 2011. Accessed October 11, 2016. http://www.whitehouse.gov/photos-andvideo/video/2011/09/20
- 52.
Ibid.
- 53.
For Turkey’s involvement in the NATO campaign against Libya, see Müge Kınacıoğlu and Aylin G. Gürzel, “Turkey’s Contribution to NATO’s Role in Post-Cold War Security Governance: The Use of Force and Security Identity Formation,” Global Governance 19, no. 3 (2013).
- 54.
“Turkey Conference in USA—US Assistant Defense Secretary Says PKK Threatens Both Turkey & NATO’s Values,” Anotolian Agency, June 24, 2011. Accessed June 21, 2016. http://toolkit.dialog.com/intranet/cgi/present?STYLE=739318018&PRESENT=DB=985,AN=319201775,FM=9,SEARCH=MD.GenericSearch
- 55.
Craig Whitlock, “US Steps Up Support of Turkey amid Syrian Conflict,” The Washington Post, October 20, 2012. Accessed September 17, 2016. https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/2012/10/19/98b4f104-1a1e-11e2-b235-9cd54b35db6f_print.html
- 56.
Philip Stephens, “Turkey Stumbles on the Road to Damascus,” Financial Times, October 26, 2012. Accessed October 12, 2016. https://www.ft.com/content/54e22420-1dce-11e2-901e-00144feabdc0
- 57.
Robert Booth, “Israeli Attack on Gaza Flotilla Sparks International Outrage,” The Guardian, May 31, 2010. Accessed November 21, 2016. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2010/may/31/israeli-attacks-gaza-flotilla-activists
- 58.
Report of the Secretary-General’s Panel of Inquiry on the May 31, 2010 Flotilla Incident, September 2011. Accessed September 30, 2016. http://www.un.org/News/dh/infocus/middle_east/Gaza_Flotilla_Panel_Report.pdf’
- 59.
“Israel’s Attack Against Ship Taking Aid to Gaza,” Anatolia Agency, June 2, 2010.
- 60.
Mark Landler, “US Tries to Keep Its Balance between Turkey and Israel,” The New York Times, June 2, 2010.
- 61.
Peter Baker, “Obama Marks Genocide Without Saying the Word,” The New York Times, April 24, 2010. Accessed August 24, 2016. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/25/world/europe/25prexy.html
- 62.
Robert Tait and Ewen MacAskill, “Turkey Threatens ‘Serious Consequences’ after US Vote on Armenian Genocide,” The Guardian, March 5, 2010. Accessed September 24, 2016. http://www.theguardian.com/world/2010/mar/05/turkey-us-votearmenian-genocide
- 63.
Jose W. Fernandez, US-Turkey Relationship, White House, Remarks, January 26, 2011. Accessed September 24, 2016. https://www.state.gov/e/eb/rls/rm/2011/155868.htm
- 64.
Ibid.
- 65.
Namık Tan, “Turkish-US Strategic Partnership,” Hürriyet Daily News, January 12, 2011. Accessed August 22, 2016. http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/turkish-us-strategic-partnership.aspx?pageID=438&n=turkish-us-strategic-partnership-2011-01-11.
- 66.
See Zeynep Arkan and Müge Kınacıoğlu, “Enabling ‘Ambitious Activism’: Davutoğlu’s Vision of a New Foreign Policy Identity for Turkey,” Turkish Studies 17, no. 3 (2016).
- 67.
Pew Research Center, Global Opinion of Obama Slips, International Policies Faulted, June 13, 2012. Accessed July 16, 2016. http://www.pewglobal.org/2012/06/13/chapter-5-rating-world-leaders/
- 68.
Pew Research Center, Confidence in Obama Lifts US Image Around the World, June 23, 2009. Accessed June 25, 2016. http://www.pewglobal.org/2009/07/23/chapter-1-views-of-the-u-s-and-american-foreign-policy-2/
- 69.
Pew Research Center, America’s Global Image Remains More Positive Than China’s, July 18, 2013. Accessed August 6, 2016. http://www.pewglobal.org/2013/07/18/chapter-1-attitudes-toward-the-united-states/
- 70.
During 2012–2013, Erdoğan failed to convince Obama regarding the participation of Hamas in Israel-Palestine peace talks.
- 71.
Radikal, November 20, 2012.
- 72.
Barçın Yinanç, “Ruling AKP Puts Its Stamp on Turkey’s Changing Foreign Policy,” Hürriyet Daily News, November 4, 2010. Accessed September 30, 2016. http://www.turkishnews.com/en/content/page/1805/?page_id=0
- 73.
Serkan Demirtas, “Obama Secures Second Term: Makes History Again,” Hurriyet Daily News, November 7, 2012. Accessed September 13, 2016. http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/obama-securs-second-term-makes-history-again-.aspx?pageID=238&nid=34134
- 74.
“Obama’s Re-election: Reactions from the Middle East,” Al-Monitor, November 6, 2012. Accessed October 2, 2016. http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2012/al-monitor/obama-win-middle-east.html#ixzz4b6oND1zp
- 75.
“Erdoğan Congratulates Obama on Behalf of Turkey,” Daily Sabah, November 8, 2012. Accessed October 2, 2016. https://www.dailysabah.com/turkey/2012/11/08/on-behalf-of-turkey-i-congratulate-obama
- 76.
“Turkey Watching US Elections Closely,” Deutsche Welle, October 30, 2012. Accessed September 8, 2016. http://www.dw.com/en/turkey-watching-us-elections-closely/a-16341914
- 77.
Ibid.
- 78.
Ibid.
- 79.
The Istanbul street protests began when a group of environmentalists staged a peaceful demonstration at Taksim’s Gezi Park to protest the government’s plans to demolish the park and build a shopping mall and other buildings. The protest movement rapidly adopted a broader agenda, developed into a wider movement spreading to many Turkish cities, and encompassed professionals and other members of the urban middle class as well. The most prominent concerns of the protestors included objections to Erdoğan’s leadership style, seen as authoritarian and insensitive to the concerns of constituencies other than their (AKP’s) supporters. The protesters also opposed to the AKP’s attempt to impose moral conservatism on Turkish society, the restrictions imposed on the freedom of expression, and the efforts to limit the sale and consumption of alcohol. The police heavy handedly suppressed the protests. For Gezi Park protests, see Constanze Letsch, “Turkey protests spread after violence in Istanbul over park demolition” The Guardian, June 1, 2013. Accessed October 23, 2016. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/may/31/istanbul-protesters-violent-clashes-police, and Ian Traynor and Constanze Letsch, “Turkey divided more than ever by Erdoğan’s Gezi Park crackdown,” The Guardian, June 20, 2013. Accessed October 23, 2016. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/jun/20/turkey-divided-erdogan-protests-crackdown
- 80.
Richard Weitz, “Turkey Protests Rattle Washington,” The Turkey Analyst, June 9, 2013. Accessed November 22, 2016. https://www.turkeyanalyst.org/publications/turkey-analyst-articles/item/46-turkey-protests-rattle-washington.html
- 81.
See Joint Press Conference by President Obama and Prime Minister Erdogan of Turkey, May 16, 2013. Accessed August 23, 2016. https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/the-press-office/2013/05/16/joint-press-conference-president-obama-and-prime-minister-erdogan-turkey
- 82.
“Obama’s Re-election: Reactions from the Middle East,” Al-Monitor, November 6, 2012. Accessed October 2, 2016. http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2012/al-monitor/obama-win-middle-east.html#ixzz4b6oND1zp
- 83.
Ibid.
- 84.
For PKK terrorism, see Sabri Sayari, “Turkey and the Middle East in 1990s,” Journal of Palestine Studies 26, no. 3 (Spring 1997).
- 85.
Pew Research Center, “The Turkish People Don’t Look Favorably upon the U.S., or Any Other Country, Really,” October 31, 2014. Accessed October 16, 2016. http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2014/10/31/the-turkish-people-dont-look-favorably-upon-the-u-s-or-any-other-country-really/
- 86.
Pinar İpek, “Oil and Intra-State Conflict in Iraq and Syria: Sub-State Actors and Challenges for Turkey’s Energy Security,” Middle Eastern Studies 53, no. 3 (2017): 413.
- 87.
Halil Çelik, “US Vice-President Biden Meets with Erdogan, Backs Turkey’s Invasion of Syria,” Global Research. Accessed September 1, 2016. http://www.globalresearch.ca/us-vice-president-biden-meets-with-erdogan-backs-turkeys-invasion-of-syria/5542453
- 88.
Ibid.
- 89.
See, for example, “Erdogan Says US-Led Coalition Gives Support to Terrorist Groups in Syria,” Reuters, December 27, 2016. Accessed December 30, 2016 http://www.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-crisis-syria-turkey-idUSKBN14G1EU
- 90.
Julian Borger, “US Providing Light Arms to Kurdish-Led Coalition in Syria, Officials Confirm,” The Guardian, September 29, 2016. Accessed December 22, 2016. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/sep/29/syria-us-arms-supply-kurds-turkey
- 91.
“Pentagon: PYD’ye silah yardım kararı Obama döneminde alındı” (Pentagon: The Decision to Give Arms to PYD Was Taken during the Obama Period), Sabah, January 31, 2017. Accessed February 5, 2017. http://www.sabah.com.tr/dunya/2017/02/01/abdnin-pydye-silah-yardim-karari-obama-doneminde-alinmis
- 92.
Steve Herman, “Turkey-US Relations Strained by Coup Attempt,” Voice of America, July 28, 2016. Accessed September 14, 2016. http://www.voanews.com/a/turkey-us-relations-strained-coup-attempt/3439070.html
- 93.
Tim Arango and Ceylan Yeginsu, “Turks Agree on One Thing: US was Behind Failed Coup,” The New York Times, August 2, 2016. Accessed August 17, 2016. https://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/03/world/europe/turkey-coup-erdogan-fethullah-gulen-united-states.html?_r=0
- 94.
See, Statement by Presidential Spokesperson İbrahim Kalın, December 26, 2016. Accessed January 31, 2017. http://www.tccb.gov.tr/en/spokesperson/1696/69561/cumhurbaskanligi-sozcusu-buyukelci-ibrahim-kalinin-basin-toplantisinda-yaptigi-aciklama.html
- 95.
Halil Karaveli, “Turkey Expects a Restart with the US,” The Turkey Analyst, January 23, 2017. Accessed February 24, 2017. https://www.turkeyanalyst.org/publications/turkey-analyst-articles/item/571-turkey-is-expecting-a-restart-with-the-us.html
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Kınacıoğlu, M., Gürzel Aka, A.G. (2018). Turkish Perceptions of Turkey–US Relations During Obama’s Presidency: Dialectics of Expectations/Partnership and Disappointments/Estrangement. In: Maass, M. (eds) The World Views of the Obama Era. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-61076-4_8
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