MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

“US is not at war with Islam” Obama tells Turkish parliament

Washington and Turkey “solid” friends

During his first visit to a Muslim nation United States president Barack Obama said the US ”is not and will never be at war with Islam''. In an address to the Turkish parliament in Ankara on Monday, he called for a greater partnership with the Muslim world.

In what was the first address given to the Turkish parliament by a US president since Bill Clinton in 1996, Obama said: “Let me say this as clearly as I can: The United Stated is not at war with Islam ... if we are joined together in delivering that message East and West, to the world, I think we can have an extraordinary impact.”

He said “America's relationship with the Muslim world cannot and will not be based on opposition to al-Qaeda''. Obama added: ”we seek broad engagement based upon mutual interests and mutual respect.''

Obama described Turkey as an important US ally in the fight against terrorism, the war in Afghanistan and the Middle East peace process. The comments came shortly after private talks between him and Abdullah Gul, the Turkish president.

The two countries have clashed over the last several years, particularly regarding the 2003 US invasion of Iraq (Turkey refused to allow US troops to enter Iraqi territory via Turkey). During the Bush administration, Turks grew increasingly antagonistic, with only 9% holding a favourable view of the US according to polls in 2007, down from 52 percent in 2002.

“Turkey is a critical ally. Turkey is an important part of Europe. And Turkey and the United States must stand together – and work together – to overcome the challenges of our time,” the president said, listing a number of issues that concern both countries, among them terrorism, nuclear proliferation, and energy security.

His address was praised by political analysts and experts in the complex politics of the region.

“To me, his speech says that there is going to be a lot of cooperation between the United States and Turkey in the future,” says Sahin Alpay, a professor of political science at Istanbul's Bahçesehir University.

Obama's reiteration of US support for Turkey's bid to become a member of the European Union (EU), as well as his call that Turkey continue with the political reforms required by that effort, were also important, said Professor Alpay.

“He emphasized the importance of democracy in this country and he pointed to almost all the issues that concern democratization in Turkey, indirectly referring to the Kurdish question, the rights of minorities, including non-Muslim minorities, and he also emphasized how countries are in need of changing. These are all very welcome remarks for people who care about democratization in Turkey,” he added.

Hugh Pope, an analyst for the International Crisis Group, a policy and advocacy organization based in Brussels said: “I think so much can be solved by such outreach. One of the reasons that anti-Americanism in Turkey is so accentuated is that no one was visiting and no one was talking to Turkey. That's half the battle”.

”I think that he's setting a great example to the European Union. In a way, he's challenging European Union leaders to follow him and reconnect with Turkey.“

Obama also tackled the one issue that again could derail Turkish-US relations: how to deal with the 1915 massacres of Armenians under the Ottoman Empire.

Turkey accepts that many Christian Armenians were killed by Ottoman Turks during World War I but denies that up to 1.5 million people died as a result.

Obama said that while his views on a resolution calling the killing of Armenians ”genocide“ had not changed, he wanted negotiations between Turkey and Armenia aimed at restoring diplomatic relations to bear fruits. He praised Turkey for pursuing ”difficult political reforms“ and pressed Turkey to open borders with Armenia.

”[Open borders] would provide for a peaceful and prosperous coexistence” that would serve both countries, he said.

There were huge protests preceding Obama's visit across many Turkish cities. The protesters said he was seeking to pressure Turkey to deploy troops in Afghanistan in an effort to control the situation there.