Who is Obama’s Favorite Middle East Leader? An Anti-American Radical Who Loathes America and Israel
By Barry Rubin, PC MEDIA
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There is, however, a man who Obama loves to deal with, if not every day at least as often as possible: Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
As Turkish expert Soner Cagaptay put it, “The United States and Turkey are on a honeymoon, with President Obama and Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan having formed what is probably the best relationship between a U.S. president and a Turkish prime minister in decades…. Obama and Erdogan seem to have really hit it off…. The two leaders speak often… and frequently agree on policy.”
I would also stress that Erdogan is Obama’s tutor on Middle East affairs:
–When Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and other Obama Administration officials claim that Islamists like the Muslim Brotherhood are really moderate and will be further moderated by being in power, the only example provided was that Erdogan’s regime is moderate.
–The U.S. government announced last September 11 its self-described main initiative for the tenth anniversary of the attacks on America. It was an international counterterrorist organization with Turkey as the sole co-chair. Israel was not invited to join.
–When the Turkish regime has engaged in anti-Israel tirades–which Turkey’s opposition leader has called going to the verge of war with Israel–no U.S. criticism, pressure, or lessening of the Obama-Erdogan love affair has taken place. By acting in this way, Obama has licensed Obama’s anti-Israel policies and his regime’s at times antisemitic rhetoric.
–Despite the Turkish government’s opposition to additional sanctions on Iran last year and Erdogan’s effort to sabotage U.S. efforts by cutting a separate deal with Tehran, Obama was not perturbed.
–Erdogan’s close and supportive relationship with Hizballah and Hamas have not brought any U.S. negative reaction.
–The U.S. government and mass media have systematically avoided talking about this regime’s ties to terrorist groups, including its sponsorship of the Gaza flotilla which was organized by the IHH terrorists. The Turkish regime has also been involved in antisemitic actions, like an antisemitic website sponsored by the Turkish Education Ministry.
–Erdogan has publicly stated that he believes Iran is not seeking nuclear weapons and that Iranian President Ahmadinejad was his friend. Lately they haven’t been getting along so well. Why, Turkish moderation? No, Erdogan wants a Sunni Islamist regime in Syria; Ahmadinejad wants the current Damascus government which is his ally.
–The regime’s foreign minister Ahmed Davuto?lu wrote a book in Turkish saying that his plan was to move from alliance with the West to one with the Islamist world in order to fight the West. The book has never been translated and the regime has bought up copies. No Western news media has written about it. Recently, he wrote a book in English saying the regime wanted to be friends with everyone and loved the West. This has been widely reviewed and favorably discussed.
–Far from being a moderate Muslim or even a moderate Islamist, Erdogan has been carrying out the fundamental transformation of Turkey into an Islamist dictatorship.
–Under the guidance of Erdogan’s regime, much of the Turkish media has been generating anti-Americanism. Polls show a huge rise in anti-American public opinion which Erdogan has augmented, not combatted.
–Incidentally, Erdogan uses the warm report he receives from the Obama Administration at home for political purposes. If the Americans like us, the government tells voters, we couldn’t possibly be Islamists. Far from isolating Turkey, our policies abroad (alliance with Iran, Syria–up until recently–Hamas and Hizballah) shows our government’s success. Everyone in Turkey knows that the U.S. government is helping the regime in electoral terms.
–Among Erdogan’s past statements was his famous remark that democracy is like a streetcar and you just must decide where to get off. The Turkish model is inspiring Islamists elsewhere not toward moderation but merely toward patience in implementing their programs. They participate in elections not because they believe in democracy but because they know they will win the elections and then can consolidate power and irreversibly transform their societies along the lines they wish.
–U.S. embassy reporting from Ankara, as we can see from Wikileaks, showed the radical Islamism of Erdogan’s regime on many occasions. Obama simply ignored it.
He has certainly not arrived at that destination yet but he is well on the way. The independent power of every Turkish institution has been broken. Thousands of dissidents have been arrested and thrown into jail for years on flimsy charges. Turkey has more journalists in prison than any other country in the world. The list of oppression, repression, and Islamization goes on and on.
In other words, Erdogan tells Obama that there’s nothing to fear from Islamists in places like Egypt, Libya, Tunisia, and elsewhere. They are really moderates or soon will be. Of course, Erdogan doesn’t care a Smyrna fig for U.S. interests or democracy or moderation. He only wants to promote Islamism in general and Turkish leadership of the Middle East in particular.
But, they say, Erdogan is now opposed to Iran. Sure, though their economic relations continue to be very strong, but only about which country would be the Islamist power in the region. If it serves his purpose, Erdogan will guide Obama into siding with the Sunni Islamists (the Muslim Brotherhood and himself) against the Shia Islamist bloc (Iran and the Syrian regime).
If so, we will soon be told that the Sunni Islamists are really moderate. Just as backing them is the “best” way to combat al-Qaida, it will also be portrayed as the “best” way to defeat Iran.
Erdogan is a con-man in this regard; Obama is his sucker we are their victims. As a result, nations will be enslaved (or further enslaved); the prospects for real democracy will recede, Israel will face tremendous dangers, and U.S. interests will suffer greatly.
Let us, then, summarize the situation:
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The president of the United States adores a radical, anti-American Islamist who supports radical terrorist groups, seeks to overthrow U.S. allies and replace them with other radical Islamist governments, and wants (no, he doesn’t say it publicly, but what do you think?) Israel wiped off the map.
This is a formula for disaster. And it is precisely what we are seeing every day.
Natural gas on Cyphrus and a gas deal with Greece?
ROTFLMAO
Like when?
When, Where, How?
What quarters?
Don’t remember, tell us what happened.
Barry Rubin goes WAY TOO FAR in damning the Obama/Erdogan relationship. I read the article by Soner Cagaptay, a senior fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy. He had many positive things to say about these two, including that the new Turkish-Iran rivalry will have a positive effect on Iraq by competing economically and politically with Iran when U.S. troops leave and may eventually lead to a closer and better relationship between Turkey, The U.S. and Israel. Obama extracted a promise from Erdogan that the recent flotilla to Gaza would have no Turkish citizens on board. Speaking of those boats, who was on board them? Because the subject disappeared almost immediately.
Some Jews are quick to jump down the throats of others, and I’ve read this is a characteristic of most Jews. But sometimes it happens too soon before we know what’s going on. I’ve personally experienced this, and in some quarters the treatment of Obama has been way off base. And do you remember the Israeli jokesters whose prank over the heighth of a chair really ticked Turkey off?
No Wonder Obama likes the Turks. The Muslim population there slaughtered almost half of turkeys population. Most of whom were Christian and the others were other of some non-muslim belief. In this Obama is continuing a long standing tradition of U.S. Support for murderous regimes throughout the world.
To add more fuel to your absolutely accurate analysis, let me cite a recent news item (appearing in http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/nov/o4/) that illustrates clearly the relentless march of islamization in Turkey. “A Turkish court reduces sentences for men accused of raping a 13 year old” was the headline. The sentences of 26 men (including teachers, civil servants and village elders) were changed from 10 years minimum sentences to lesser penalties ranging from one to six years. American women who will vote in the upcoming presidential election in 2012 will be interested in Obama’s friendship with the leader of a country that demonstrates his nation’s acceptance of laws that sanctify abuse (and worse; women killed in Turkey increased by 1400% from 20002 to 2009) of women.
Israels American friends in Congress approved:
Turkey to Buy Three Attack Helicopters From U.S., Star Reports
So much for pro Israel lobby!!!
The attack helicopters manufactured by Textron Inc. (TXT) unit Bell Helicopter Textron Inc. will be used to combat the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK, starting as soon as June, according to the Istanbul-based newspaper.
Obama is essentially George W. Bush. “W” was in love with the Saudis, and Obama with the Turks. Both of them feel free to insult the Israeli Prime Minister, in public and in private. Yes, Bert. It’s about time American Jews took notice. I don’t know how the Republican candidate will turn out, but this guy has to go.
Articles like this one rightly inform and decry the treachery of Turkey and Obama together. But the missing element that goes unnoticed is the failure of the American Jewish establishment to speak out forcefully to confront Obama on his treachery and to alert the American people. Unfortunately the American Jewish establishment is too assimilated to respond properly. And so the enemies of America and Israel grow stronger and bolder. No one in the world will even speak up for truth and justice and even Israel is somewhat muted.