The Turkey-Israel-US Triangle: Obama Boosts Erdogan's Credibility

On Sunday, following a conversation with Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, President Obama conducted an e-mail interview with the Turkish daily Hurriyet. 

Obama said that he and Erdogan had “reaffirmed the strong state of U.S.-Turkish relations” despite some differences “from time to time.” He continued:

Our partnership is resilient, and we agreed that the irresponsible acts of WikiLeaks do not threaten it. Given the increasingly complex challenges the world faces, I believe that U.S.-Turkish cooperation is more important now than ever.

Asked about speculation that Ankara is turning its face to the East, Obama underlined his belief that Ankara's "new role" is suitable for the West:

Turkey has pursued an active foreign policy that has seen it interacting more intensively than ever with countries all across its neighborhood and beyond. I recognize this important emerging role for Turkey.

The controversy over the Iran vote stemmed from a difference about tactics. Turkey shares the goal of preventing a nuclear-armed Iran.

As for the deadlock in Ankara's bilateral relationship with West Jerusalem, Obama said that the two U.S. allies should “find an acceptable way forward” and “do everything they can" to repair their relations.

Erdogan, assurance of Washington's public acceptance, continued his rhetorical targeting of Israel on Tuesda. As Turkey and Syria signed several cooperation agreements and the Israeli military responded to rocket attacks from Gaza, Erdogan said:

We are concerned that U.S. efforts to start direct talks between Israel and the Palestinians were left unsolved due to Israel's intransigence. Under these conditions, the international community and countries of the region must engage in more intense efforts for a peace opening.