WASHINGTON — A report by the Washington Institute said Ankara has moved steadily
away from its NATO allies and toward Iran, Russia and Syria.
Turkey's new foreign
policy, led by the ruling Justice and Development Party, or AKP, has come at
the expense of Ankara's relations with Israel, the European Union and the
United States, according to the report authored by senior researcher Soner Cagaptay.
"Ankara will likely opt out of a NATO consensus on Iran, clash with the
United States on how to handle Hamas and Hizbullah, and disagree with the EU
and the U.S. on Russia," the report, titled "The AKP's Foreign Policy: The
Misnomer of Neo-Ottomanism," said.
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The report said Turkey has developed friendlier relations with Russia
and the Islamic world than with the West. Cagaptay cited Hamas, Hizbullah,
Iran, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Sudan and Syria.
"The AKP's foreign policy has a weakness for Arab Islamists and their
causes," the report said. "The policy shows empathy towards Middle East
Muslims and Islamists, though the same empathy is missing towards
non-Muslims and non-Middle Eastern issues. Business deals play an important
role in sustaining the stronger ties that Turkey is developing with Russia,
the Persian Gulf states, Sudan, and Iran."
At the same time, Turkey refused to support Georgia during its brief war
with Russia in 2008. The report said Turkey has also ignored its Central
Asian neighbors, such as Azerbaijan and Georgia, to focus on relations with
Russia.
Cagaptay said AKP, most of whose leaders speak Arabic and were educated
in Muslim schools, has divided the world in religious blocs — either
Christian or Muslim. AKP, which won power in 2002 and dominates parliament,
has avoided criticism of Iran's nuclear progam while maintaining ties with
Teheran's proxies, Hamas and Hizbullah.