TURKEY - Tense Allies

"Turkish foreign minister slams U.S. for having ‘no clear strategy’ on Syria" PBS NewsHour 4/3/2019

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SUMMARY:  Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu slammed the United States’ Syria strategy and Middle East peace plan, saying Wednesday that one was underdeveloped and the other might not exist.

“It seems that there is no clear strategy yet” by the U.S. to dial back its military presence in Syria, Cavusoglu said in an interview with PBS NewsHour anchor and managing editor Judy Woodruff.

Cavusoglu said Turkey was getting different signals from President Donald Trump and other U.S. departments, including the military.  Trump tweeted last December that the United States was withdrawing all of its troops from Syria, but since then he has gradually dialed back that declaration and committed to keeping a residual force in the country.

Turkey’s foreign minister also said he doubted the existence of a U.S. peace plan for Israel and the Palestinians — an effort that Trump’s son-in-law and White House adviser Jared Kushner has been leading for the U.S..  “Until today, there is no peace plan,” Cavusoglu said.  “We are not sure whether there will be.”

He added that Trump’s decision to move the U.S. embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem showed the President’s bias towards Israel.  Trump’s recent policy change recognizing Israel’s sovereignty over the Golan Heights, which Israel seized from Syria during the Six-Day war in 1967, was another decision that “everybody has been concerned about,” Cavusoglu said.

“Everybody believes the U.S. is no longer a balanced or objective” leader on the world stage, he said.

JOURNALISM - Jamal Khashoggi

"Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi has disappeared.  Will the U.S. take a stand?" PBS NewsHour 10/8/2018

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SUMMARY:  Jamal Khashoggi, a singular voice willing to criticize Saudi leaders, has disappeared in Istanbul at the Saudi consulate.  The Washington Post columnist and prominent former editor has previously spoken out about some of crown prince Mohammed bin Salman's actions, including the silencing of dissenters.  Nick Schifrin talks with Fred Hiatt of the Washington Post and Robin Wright from the New Yorker.

TRUMP TARIFFS - Tweets and Turkey

"Trump’s tariff tweet inflames Turkey’s economic crisis and strained U.S. relations" PBS NewsHour 8/10/2018

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SUMMARY:  President Trump turned a simmering conflict with Turkey to a boil, tweeting that he would double tariffs on Turkish steel and aluminum.  President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that Turkey was at economic war, as the country's currency tumbled as much as 20 percent to a record low.  Already, U.S.-Turkey relations have been strained over an array of conflicts.  Nick Schifrin reports.

TRUMP DIPLOMACY - Turkey vs Kurds

"Is U.S.-Turkey relationship weakened over Kurdish conflict?" PBS NewsHour 2/1/2018

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SUMMARY:  Turkish officials say the air and ground campaign against U.S.-backed Kurdish forces in northwest Syria is a "national security issue" and an effort to protect the country's border, but the U.S. sees the Kurdish militia as a valuable partner in the fight against ISIS.  Judy Woodruff talks with Serdar Kilic, Turkey’s ambassador to the U.S., for the Turkish perspective on the conflict in Syria.

SYRIA - U.S. Troops, Indefinitely

"U.S. troops could be in Syria indefinitely.  Here’s why" PBS NewsHour 1/19/2018

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SUMMARY:  Turkey's military appeared ready on Friday to invade a Kurdish area of Syria and attack a force who, backed by the U.S., helped liberate Raqqa from the Islamic State.  While the U.S. wants to convert them into a stabilization force, Turkey's president says they are a grave threat.  Nick Schifrin talks with former Pentagon official Andrew Exum and Mona Yacoubian of the U.S. Institute of Peace.

TURKEY - Rule of a Dictator

Of course, Trump loves this guy because it IS a Trump's dream.

"Erdogan's crackdown targets every aspect of Turkish society" PBS NewsHour 8/30/2017

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SUMMARY:  A failed military coup in Turkey last July served as a turning point for government efforts to crack down on opposition groups.  The coup prompted Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to declare a state of emergency and since then thousands of civil service members have been put on trial and government employees fired for being critical.  Special correspondent Nick Schifrin reports.

TURKEY - The Slow Fall of a Constitutional Republic

"Turkey silences more journalists in latest post-coup crackdown" PBS NewsHour 11/2/2016

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SUMMARY:  Turkey's main opposition newspaper is the latest target of a Turkish government purge.  Some 170 news outlets have been shuttered since July, just one facet of a crackdown on anyone suspected to support an Islamic cleric accused of fomenting a coup attempt.  Hari Sreenivasan speaks with Amberin Zaman of the Woodrow Wilson Center about the consolidation of power by the Turkish president.

HARI SREENIVASAN (NewsHour):  It's been more than three months since a coup sought to depose the Turkish president.  The attempt failed quickly, but the crackdown in its aftermath continues, alarming many of Turkey's allies.

Readers have opened Turkey's main opposition newspaper to find blank columns this week, a protest against jailing its editor in chief and a dozen staffers.  Their arrests Monday were part of an ongoing purge against perceived opponents by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan since a failed coup last July.

On Tuesday, his prime minister brushed off European criticism.

PRIME MINISTER BINALI YILDIRIM, Turkey (through translator):  Today, somebody from the European Parliament says the detention of journalists from that newspaper is a red line.  Brother, we don't care about your red line.  It's the people who draw the red line.  What importance does your line have?

HARI SREENIVASAN:  Across Turkey, some 170 outlets have been shuttered since July, leaving 2,500 journalists out of work.  The U.S. State Department has raised its concerns repeatedly, as it did again Monday.

JOHN KIRBY, State Department spokesman:  Suppressing speech and opinion and the press doesn't support the fight against terrorism and only encroaches on the fundamental freedoms that help ensure democracies remain strong.

HARI SREENIVASAN:  But silencing Turkey's media is only one facet of a crackdown on anyone suspected of supporting Fethullah Gulen, the Islamic cleric whom Erdogan accuses of fomenting the coup attempt.  Gulen lives in exile in Pennsylvania.

A staggering 100,000 civil servants have been fired, including 10,000 more just last weekend, and 37,000 people have been arrested.  President Erdogan has even voiced support for reinstating the death penalty, though it would dash hopes for Turkey's European Union membership bid.

Meanwhile, as he consolidates his internal power, the Turkish leader is waging war along his borders.  This week, Turkish tanks massed at Silopi, near the Iraqi frontier, to press the fight against the Kurdish separatist group known as the PKK.  Southeastern Turkey is a largely Kurdish region, and the PKK maintains bases in Northern Iraq.

In Ankara, the defense minister said there is — quote — “no obligation to wait for threats to rise.”

FIKRI ISIK, Defense Minister, Turkey (through translator):  We have important developments in the region.  There is a serious struggle against terrorism inside Turkey and on the other side of the border.  Turkey is in the position of making preparations for all kinds of possibilities.

HARI SREENIVASAN:  And, in Syria, Turkish forces are looking to retake the city of al-Bab north of Aleppo from the Islamic State.  Success would also bar the city to the Kurds, who hope to close a 45-mile gap between their enclaves and create a contiguous Kurdish zone along the Turkish frontier.

Turkey also insists that Syrian Kurdish forces not be part of any campaign to retake the Islamic State's self-proclaimed capital of Raqqa in Syria.  All of this has strained relations with Washington.  The Obama administration regards the Kurds as among its staunchest allies against ISIS.

We take a closer look at this recent crackdown with Amberin Zaman.  She is a Turkish journalist and author and serves as a fellow at the Wilson Center, a think tank in Washington.

So, 10,000 more civil servants just in the past week that have been fired.  Right after the coup, the government said this was to try and root out all the Gulenists at the time.  Why now?  Why is this happening?

AMBERIN ZAMAN, Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars:  Well, as you pointed out, the government has justified these moves on the grounds that it's weeding out the Gulenists, who they say have penetrated the entire government, the judiciary, the army, academia.

But, at this point, when you look at the scale of this purge, you have more than 100,000 people now who have either lost their jobs or who are in jail, I think around 30,000-plus now in jail.  And you look at the number of journalists also in jail, the number of media outlets, over 100, well over 100 now shuttered.

It's becoming very clear that this is just not about the Gulenists, but more an effort on the part of the government to stifle all dissenting voices.

WAR ON ISIS - Combined Operations in Syria

"Turkish, U.S.  forces launch operation in Syria; Biden calls for Kurds to halt advances" PBS NewsHour 8/24/2016

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SUMMARY:  Backed by U.S. forces, the Turkish military has launched a major operation inside Syria, sending warplanes and ground troops to retake territory held by the Islamic State.  Vice President Joe Biden also called upon Kurdish rebels in the area to stop advances into Turkey, saying they would not receive U.S. support otherwise.  Judy Woodruff speaks with the Atlantic Council's Aaron Stein for more.

JUDY WOODRUFF (NewsHour):  Turkish military forces launched a major operation inside Syria today to retake the strategic border town of Jarabulus from ISIS.

Turkish and American jets attacked from above, as Turkish tanks and special forces moved into the town.  Syrian rebel groups were also part of the operation.

Beyond ousting ISIS from the area, Turkey has another motive for attacking on Jarabulus, to stem the ambitions of the main U.S.-backed Syrian Kurdish Militia, known as the YPG, which has been taking over territory from ISIS.

Vice President Biden was visiting Turkey today, and he called upon the Kurds to limit their advances.

VICE PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN:  We have made it absolutely clear to the elements that were part of the Syrian democratic forces, the YPG that participated, that they must move back across the river.  They cannot, will not and under no circumstances get American support if they do not keep that commitment, period.

JUDY WOODRUFF:  We examine the significance of all of this now with Aaron Stein.  He's a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council's Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East.

Aaron Stein, thank you for being here.

AARON STEIN, Atlantic Council:  Thank you for having me.

JUDY WOODRUFF:  So, what is the significance of this incursion across the border into Syria?

AARON STEIN:  I think the biggest one is, it denies ISIS one of its last major crossing points across the Turkish-Syrian border.

Jarabulus has historically been a place where they have moved men and material across.  So, by Turkey moving in alongside of its host of Arab groups, ISIS loses territory along its border, ISIS goes weaker.  And this is a good thing for the U.S.  and Turkey.

JUDY WOODRUFF:  But if it hadn't been for this move, it's possible that the Syrian Kurds would have been in that territory sooner or later, is that not right?

AARON STEIN:  Yes, I think that's the issue here, is that the United States is having to thread a very fine needle.  It's having to thread the needle very finely here.

But it has to, one, prosecute the war against ISIS, where the Syrian Kurds have become the most prominent ground force and the one capable of taking the most territory, while managing ties with a NATO ally who is very wary of the Syrian Kurds moving up to its border.

TURKEY - Erdogan's Crackdown

"Turkish government crackdown touches thousands after coup attempt" PBS NewsHour 7/19/2016

COMMENT:  A nation on the road to dictatorship via Hitler's playbook.

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SUMMARY:  In Istanbul, thousands of supporters of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan went out to the streets, demanding retribution for those responsible for the coup over the weekend.  Meanwhile, even more Turkish civil servants were detained or suspended from their jobs.  Special correspondent Marcia Biggs talks to Hari Sreenivasan about the crackdown.

HARI SREENIVASAN (NewsHour):  President Obama spoke by phone today with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.  The U.S. Justice and State Departments are reviewing Turkey's extradition request for Fethullah Gulen, the man the country says is responsible for the attempted coup last week.

And in its aftermath, the crackdown has only intensified, with thousands more civil servants suspended from their jobs today, in addition to the thousands already under detention.

For more, we're joined now from Istanbul by special correspondent Marcia Biggs.

Marcia, you're standing in front what looks like, what — is this a pro-Erdogan rally?

MARCIA BIGGS, special correspondent:  Indeed, Hari.

This is the largest protest of the last five days.  The first night, as you will remember, on Friday night, when the coup was attempted, President Erdogan called on his people to come down to the streets to save democracy, as he said, to protect him, to protect the government, and this is the fifth day.

People have come down in droves every single day.  And this is by far the largest.  I would say maybe 3,000 people are here tonight.  The mood is one of nationalism, the Turkish flags, a lot of saving the fatherland.

What is very interesting is that Erdogan sent messages, text messages to his people, to the citizens of Turkey today, saying, please come down to the streets, as he has every day, to save the fatherland, to save democracy.  And out they have come.

Public transportation has been free every day.  Indeed, I took the ferry and I took a tram today, paid no money, and that is to encourage people to come down into the streets.

HARI SREENIVASAN:  Tell me about the impact.  Is there an impact that you can feel, though, the people that you talk to can feel about all these detentions and firings?

MARCIA BIGGS:  The crackdown over the last couple of days has been brutal, as you mentioned, 30,000 suspensions of various ministries, police and education.

That's the people who work in the prime minister's office, judges, prosecutors, 15,000, as you mentioned, members of the Education Ministry; 1,500 deans were asked to resign, and that's in addition to the 1,000 civilians that were arrested and the 6,000 soldiers that were arrested.

That's 50,000 people in this country that have been affected by this crackdown, whether it's being fired, whether it's being asked to resign, whether it's being detained.  It's incredible.

"What will Turkey look like under a state of emergency?" PBS NewsHour 7/21/2016

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SUMMARY:  The failed coup attempt in Turkey has won that nation’s president extraordinary power, in a three-month state of emergency, to impose laws by fiat.  Critics fear he will chip away at Turkey's secular constitution.  Hari Sreenivasan talks with special correspondent Marcia Biggs; and Federica Mogherini, a High Representative/Vice President of the European Union.

OPINION - Shields and Brooks 7/15/2016

"Shields and Brooks on 'sweet' Mike Pence, the challenge for the Republican convention" PBS NewsHour 7/15/2016

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SUMMARY:  Syndicated columnist Mark Shields and New York Times columnist David Brooks join Judy Woodruff to discuss the week's news, including Donald Trump's veep pick, Mike Pence, who may not be the attack dog the candidate was said to have wanted.  They also weigh in on what type of convention the nation should expect in Cleveland — and how many Trump relatives will speak.

TERRORISM - Istanbul

"Chaos and carnage — Inside the terror bombing of Istanbul’s Ataturk Airport" PBS NewsHour 6/29/2016

UPDATE:  ISIS has claimed responsibility.

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SUMMARY:  Security cameras caught the moment death was unleashed in Istanbul.  Police shot one of the armed attackers and then he detonated his bomb.  Passengers stampeded for the exits as flying glass and debris cut bodies to shreds.  It was another attack at an international airport and, for Turkey, a direct hit on its economic ambitions.  Special correspondent Jane Ferguson reports.

JUDY WOODRUFF (NewsHour):  Investigators in Istanbul, Turkey, have spent this day trying to reconstruct the assault that turned Ataturk Airport into a killing field.

Three suicide bombers left widespread carnage, 42 dead, more than 230 wounded, but no claim of responsibility.

Special correspondent Jane Ferguson begins our coverage from Istanbul.

JANE FERGUSON, Special Correspondent:  Operations resumed at Europe’s third busiest airport, amid the stark signs of terror, glass panels riddled with bullet holes, and blood splattered on ceilings.

The attack began last night, shortly before 10:00 p.m. local time.  Security cameras captured one attacker just after being shot by police, and then setting off his bomb.  That touched off a stampede to get outside, and away from danger.

ADAM KEALLY, Witness:  One guy had holes in his back from shrapnel or from glass.

HACER PEKSEN, Airport Worker (through translator):  People were wounded.  People fell down in front of me.  Four people fell in front of me.  They were torn into pieces.

JANE FERGUSON:  In the hours after the attack, Turkish officials pointed to the Islamic State.  The group was blamed for a suicide bombing in January that killed several tourists near the famed Blue Mosque in Istanbul.

And today marked two years since ISIS declared its so-called caliphate in Syria and Iraq.  Moreover, Turkey backs the U.S. bombing campaign against ISIS in Syria, and on Monday, the Turks moved to improve relations with Russia, which carries out its own airstrikes in Syria.

Both Russian President Putin and President Obama called Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan today to offer condolences.  Back in Istanbul, the human toll of this latest attack is still being felt by relatives and friends of the wounded.

SERDAR TATLISU, Relative of Victim (through translator):  We are waiting for some kind of solution.  We can hear that people are wailing here.  We cannot cope anymore.  We can’t stand still.

JANE FERGUSON:  The Turkish government has worked for years to build an international airline and to make Istanbul Airport one of the biggest hubs in the world.  Any attack against this airport is an attack against the economic ambitions of the Turkish government.  They know that.

And so just a day after the attack, the airport is completely reopened and it’s business as usual.  Some travelers at Ataturk today were trying to do the same.  They say the risk of attacks at major airports is now a reality they have come to terms with.

"CIA director says Iran must do more in fight against ISIS" PBS NewsHour 6/29/2016

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SUMMARY:  CIA Director John Brennan sat down with Judy Woodruff to discuss the repercussions of the Istanbul attack and whether the U.S. was vulnerable to similar attacks.  He was asked about Secretary of State John Kerry’s comments that Iran has been helpful in the fight against ISIS.  “They need to do more,” he said.  He also weighed in on the Benghazi report and the impact of Brexit on intel gathering.

"Turkey buries its dead amid growing demands to take on ISIS" PBS NewsHour 6/30/2016

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SUMMARY:  As the Turks went about the sad task of burying the victims of the Istanbul airport terror attack, civilian fears mounted and calls increased for Ankara to act against ISIS.  Turkey’s president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, and has been criticized for turning a blind eye to the so-called jihadi highway — the Islamic State’s use of Turkey to get recruits into Syria.  Special correspondent Jane Ferguson reports.

WAR ON ISIS - Turkey vs Russia

"How the Turkey-Russia conflict complicates anti-Islamic State efforts" PBS NewsHour 11/24/2015

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SUMMARY:  The air war over Syria escalated when a Russian warplane was shot down by Turkey.  To discuss how the incident could affect the fight against the Islamic State, Judy Woodruff speaks to Angela Stent, author of “The Limits of Partnership," and Nicholas Burns of Harvard University.

JUDY WOODRUFF (NewsHour):  We return now to the fight against the Islamic State group and how those efforts might be hindered by Turkey’s downing of a Russian warplane.

I’m joined by Nicholas Burns, a career diplomat and former U.S. ambassador to NATO.  He’s now a professor at Harvard University.  And Angela Stent, author of “The Limits of Partnership: U.S.-Russian Relations in the 21st Century.”  She’s a senior fellow at the Transatlantic Academy.

And we welcome you both.

So, just based on what we know, Angela Stent, who do we think was at fault here?  Was it the Turks for allegedly violating Russian airspace or was it the Russians for — I’m sorry — the Russians for going into Turkish airspace, or the other way around?

ANGELA STENT, Author, “The Limits of Partnership”:  Well, apparently, the Russians were only in Turkish airspace for less than a minute.

But this isn’t the first time apparently that Russian planes have violated Turkish airspace.  The Turks claim that they gave the Russians 10 warnings.  The Russians claim that that’s not true.  But it does appear that they were briefly in Turkish airspace.  The question is, could this have been de-escalated?  Could the Turks maybe have offered to escort them out of Turkish airspace?

JUDY WOODRUFF:  Well, Nicholas Burns, if they were in Turkish — over Turkish airspace, even for less than half-a-minute, was that something that warranted being shot down by the Turkish military?

NICHOLAS BURNS, Harvard University:  Well, the history and circumstances are important here.

They did violate Turkish airspace.  And, as President Obama said, every country has a right, Turkey has a right to defend that airspace.  But the Russians have violated Turkish airspace on several occasions over the last two months.  Russian drones have gone across the border.

And the Turks have warned the Russians both publicly and privately.  The Russians have also been bombing Syrian Turkmen, ethnic Turkmen villages very close to that border, and the Turks warned the Russians about that.  It seems to be the last straw for the Turks.

There are some people who are saying the Turks should have acted differently, as Angela said, that they might have escorted the fighters out, but there was fair warning to the Russians.  And as a NATO ally, it’s very important that the United States defend this right that every country’s border are sacrosanct.

And what the Russians did is clearly illegal under International Law.

REMINDER:  Putin does not care about International Law, only Russian power.  Also note that the "10 warnings" do not refer to this latest incident, it was reference to 10 intrusions.

TURKEY - Election Results

"Do Turkey’s election results signal stability or steps toward autocratic rule?" PBS NewsHour 11/2/2015

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SUMMARY:  After five months of political instability and uncertainty, Turkey is again under firm control of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's AK Party, which regained its majority in a national election Sunday.  Supporters say it’s a return to stability, but opponents worry that the win signals a shift towards autocracy. Special correspondent Malcolm Brabant reports.

MALCOLM BRABANT (NewsHour):  The call to prayer rang out around Central Istanbul today, reinforcing the message that after five months of political instability, Turkey is now back on a familiar track, under the firm control of the Islamic A.K., or A.K. Party, founded by president Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Political analysts here believe most Turks rejected the opposition parties because they needed a sense of security during a dangerous time.  But not everyone in Taksim Square was happy.

MAN:  Like I said, personally, I’m upset about what is going on.  You don’t have to be asking normal citizens.  I think everybody knows about how democracy goes on here in Turkey, so many prisoners.  You can’t say what you’re thinking, exactly.  I don’t feel free.  I’m also a bit scared.

WOMAN (through interpreter):  I think our people selected stability once again.  And I think they decided well with a single-party government again.

MALCOLM BRABANT:  As the A.K. Party celebrated last night, the prime minister urged his parliamentarians to employ humility, instead of triumphalism.  President Erdogan wasn’t giving much away about his intentions today.

RECEP TAYYIP ERDOGAN, Turkish President (through interpreter):  The national will manifested itself on November 1 in favor of stability.  After the short-term developments, the national will decided that there is no way out other than choosing stability.  They decided in favor of stability.  I hope this outcome will be good for our people and our country.

MALCOLM BRABANT:  But international observers complained about election irregularities.  Representing European election monitors, Andreas Gross urged President Erdogan to end Turkey’s divisions and to be less authoritarian.

ANDREAS GROSS, European Election Monitor:  Fear is the enemy of democracy, enemy of free choice.  And in this sense, we are disappointed of the quality of the process.  And in light of this, it is even more vital that this is an appeal that the president works in the future for a more inclusive political process.

MALCOLM BRABANT:  Leading Turkish political analyst Cengiz Aktar believes President Erdogan is now on course to get a referendum aimed at boosting his executive powers.

WAR ON ISIS - Syrian Airstrikes

"Rebel commander says Americans on the ground in Syria calling in airstrikes" PBS NewsHour 7/30/2015

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SUMMARY:  Special correspondent Jane Ferguson introduces us to a Free Syrian Army commander who has received training by the U.S.  The injured rebel said he's eager to rejoin the fight after U.S. and Turkey intensify their efforts against the Islamic State.

JUDY WOODRUFF (NewsHour):  But, first, the Pentagon has denied reports that al-Qaida linked fighters have abducted several U.S.-trained Syrian rebels outside of Aleppo, Syria.  The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights stated that the men were taken by members of the al-Nusra Front.

In May, the U.S. military launched a program to train up to 5,000 so-called moderate rebels per year.  So far, they’re nowhere near that number.

Special correspondent Jane Ferguson caught up with one of the few fighters who has been trained by the U.S. in Southern Turkey.

JANE FERGUSON (NewsHour):  In the world outside Syria, Mohammed seems nervous.  He has good reason.  As a Free Syrian Army commander, he and his men are waiting to see if foreign intervention will change the direction of the war.  He says he has already been trained by Americans.

MOHAMMED, Free Syrian Army Commander (through interpreter):  In the beginning, they asked for our three names, our first name, our surname, and father’s name.  We gave our names and pictures.  There were about 100 of us.  They took us to the camp.  They trained us for 50 days in working with guns.  The training was very good.  They taught us how to use some of the weapons we weren’t familiar with, advanced weaponry, like rockets.

JANE FERGUSON:  Mohammed says he has seen and spoken with Americans inside Syria who were coordinating airstrikes.

MOHAMMED (through interpreter):  They were telling us, these are the lines which you shouldn’t cross, or the airstrikes will hit you.

JANE FERGUSON:  Now a new deal between Turkey and the U.S. could push the Islamic State away from Turkey’s border.  American airstrikes against ISIS will now be launched from Turkish soil, the idea being, if ISIS pulls back, fighters like Mohammed could then move in.

WAR ON ISIS - Turkey Enters 'Game'

"What does Turkey’s new military action against ISIS mean?" PBS NewsHour 7/25/2015

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SUMMARY:  For the first time, Turkey is joining United States-led airstrikes in Syria, targeting Islamic State extremists.  The U.S. and NATO have pressured Turkey for months to join the military coalition against ISIS, and the country's prime minister says both military operations in Syria and Iraq will continue.  Reuters reporter Ayla Jean Yackley joins Hari Sreenivasan from Istanbul to discuss Turkey's new military actions.

HARI SREENIVASAN, PBS NEWSHOUR WEEKEND ANCHOR:  The U.S. and NATO have pressured Turkey for months to join the military coalition against ISIS. So what does Turkey’s new military action mean?

“Reuters” reporter Ayla Jean Yackley joins me from Istanbul to discuss that.

So, what was it that pushed Turkey into this fight?

AYLA JEAN YACKLEY, REUTERS:  Well, as you mentioned, earlier this week, there was a suicide bomb attack in a town called Suruc, across the border from Syria, and that sent shock waves throughout the country.  That was not the first attack by Islamic State on Turkish territory, but it was by far the most significant and deadliest, and it had to be a factor in Turkey’s decision to move closer in alliance with its ally, the United States.

HARI SREENIVASAN:  We talked about two set of targets here that Turkey is focusing on — ISIS and Kurdish separatists.  They called them a terrorist organization.  You know, one person’s terrorist organization is another person’s freedom fighter, right?

So, what’s happening across that front?

AYLA JEAN YACKLEY:  The PKK (the Kurdistan Workers’ Party) is also deemed a terrorist organization by the United States, as well as the European Union.

But the PKK, or at least forces allied with the PKK, in northern Syria have been coordinating with the United States in its campaign against Islamic State.

But Turkey’s never changed its stance towards the PKK.  It has been involved in a peace process with the PPK, in which there’s been very slow-moving talks between the two sides since late 2012.  However, it’s still very much considers them a threat to [Turkish] national security.

TURKEY - Government Spin-Doctors on 'Genocide'

"Why Turkey doesn’t use the word ‘genocide’ for Armenia" PBS NewsHour 4/24/2015

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SUMMARY:  The Turkish government has rejected the term “genocide” to describe the mass killing of Armenians 100 years ago, a stance that has sparked criticism and protest.  For two perspectives on the history and meaning today, Jeffrey Brown talks to Soner Cagaptay of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy and Hrach Gregorian of American University.

JEFFREY BROWN (NewsHour):  Some perspective now on history and today.

Hrach Gregorian is an adjunct professor at American University and president of the Institute of World Affairs, a nonprofit organization that focuses on conflict analysis and post-conflict peace-building.  And Soner Cagaptay is the director of the Turkish Research Program at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.  He’s the author of the recent book “The Rise of Turkey:  The Twenty-First Century’s First Muslim Power.”

Welcome to both of you.

Let me start with you, Hrach Gregorian.

1915, I just want to fill in a little bit of the history.  The Ottoman Empire is collapsing.  What led specifically to the killing of so many Armenians?

HRACH GREGORIAN, American University:  Well, I think there was a general feeling that the Armenians were not to be trusted.

And even before that, there was a policy of Turkification by the young Turks dating back to 1908.  And the Armenians were viewed as a threat to Turkish identity and Turkish security.  And there were orders to rid the country of the community.

JEFFREY BROWN:  For Turks, this history is tied to the creation — the end of the Ottoman Empire and the creation of the modern Turkish state.

THE KNUCKLE-DRAGING FILES - Turkish President Erdoğan

"Turkish President Erdoğan declares birth control ‘treason’" HÜRRİYET Daily News (Turkey) 12/22/2014

After expressing his staunch opposition against abortions, C-sections and morning-after pills, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has now tackled the contraception issue by declaring that it was “treason to the country,” in remarks that are likely to revive controversy on reproductive health.

“They betrayed this country for years by [promoting] birth control and attempting to dry up our [next] generations,” Erdoğan said.

Contraception is the latest network of treason to be discovered by the president in Turkey after declaring the Gülen movement last week to engaged in treachery.

Addressing the bride and groom at the wedding ceremony of the son of businessman Mustafa Kefeli on Dec. 21, he advised the newlyweds that using contraceptive methods was a betrayal to Turkey's ambition to make itself a flourishing nation with a growing young population.

“One [child] would be strange, two means rivalry, three means balance and four means abundance.  And God takes care of the rest,” he said, relating ostensible words of wisdom from an elderly man in the Central Anatolian district of Beypazarı.

Erdoğan – who has two sons and two daughters – has drawn the ire of feminist groups for declaring that every woman should have at least three offspring, before informing the populace last month that women were not equal to men.

Erdoğan has previously suggested limits to abortion rights, the morning-after pill and Caesarian sections.  He stood clear about slamming contraception, while criticizing women’s attempts to deter pregnancy.

WAR ON ISIS - The Turkish Border

My answer, NO.  It will require boots-on-the-ground, the question is whose boots.

And Turkey may be foolish to think ISIS will stop there.  Turkey can be on the ISIS list force conversion.

"Can air power alone stop advance of Islamic State militants?" PBS NewsHour 10/8/2014

Excerpt

JUDY WOODRUFF (NewsHour):  President Obama’s meeting at the Pentagon today comes as there are considerable doubts over whether the U.S.-led coalition can stop and roll back the Islamic State group’s advances.

To help assess the campaign against the militant group, I’m joined by Michele Flournoy, former undersecretary of defense for policy during the first term of the Obama administration.  She’s now chief executive officer at the Center for a New American Security.  And Colonel Derek Harvey, he was an intelligence officer and special adviser to the commander of U.S. forces in Iraq.  He’s now director for the Global Initiative on Civil Society and Conflict at the University of South Florida.

And welcome both of you back to the program.

Colonel Harvey, to you first.

The reports we had earlier in the program are that it looks as if the town of Kobani on Syria’s border with Turkey may be about to fall to the Islamic State.  Is that what you’re hearing and, if so, how big a loss is this?

COL. DEREK HARVEY (RET.), Former Army Intelligence Officer:  Well, I think that’s what is happening in Kobani.

And it’s unfortunate for that population there.  There is significant offensive activity by the Islamic State.  They’re using combined arms.  That’s tanks, mortars, artillery and infantry.  And they’re coming in on the city from at least three directions.

It is expected to fall some time in the next three to five days, according to the sources that I’m talking to.

JUDY WOODRUFF:  And how big a loss, Michele Flournoy, if this happens?

MICHELE FLOURNOY, Former Defense Department Official:   I think it’s worsened because it is right up against the Turkish border, and that will ISIS that much more room to operate along the border and possibly even do cross-border incursions in some areas.

But — so it’s of concern, but I think we have to be realistic in our expectations.  This campaign, no matter how effective, is not going to be able to stop every ISIS movement or to roll them back in every place.  Where we need to focus is really on the most strategic areas and, importantly, building up the ground forces that can retake and hold territory.  Airpower alone cannot do that.

TURKEY - Reluctant in 'War on ISIS'

"Why is Turkey reluctant to fight the Islamic State?" PBS NewsHour 10/3/2014

Excerpt

JUDY WOODRUFF (NewsHour):  We reported earlier on today’s reported beheading of another hostage by the Islamic State group.  This comes as its terrorists continued to advance on and shell the besieged Kurdish town of Kobani, along Syria’s border with Turkey.

The militants’ push is happening despite continued airstrikes by the U.S. and other anti-I.S. Coalition members.

For more, we are joined by our chief foreign affairs correspondent, Margaret Warner.

Margaret, welcome.

We did report on this, another terrible murder of a hostage.  We have just now seen a statement by the president condemning what’s happened, but he’s also saying these airstrikes will continue.  Are they doing any good if these beheadings are also continuing?

MARGARET WARNER (NewsHour):  Judy, looking on the situation on the ground both in Iraq and Syria, Iraq, they actually — they started in August.  They have actually stopped the ISIS advance, but not rolled them back.

In Syria, obviously, from the beheading video, they’re not cowed.  The I.S. people aren’t cowed.  And, secondly, this advance continues on this beleaguered Kurdish town of Kobani.  And they’re defended only by these Kurdish militiamen, Syrian Kurdish militiamen.  They are begging for help on the ground, but for now, as the President's statement suggests, the White House remains focused on long-range training of the — quote — “moderate Syrian anti-I.S. fighters” and on touting the building up or beefing up of this coalition.

TURKEY - Protests Over Corruption Probe

"Protests erupt in Turkey over corruption probe into Erdogan's government" (Part-1) PBS Newshour 12/27/2013

JUDY WOODRUFF (Newshour):  Now to nearby Turkey, once a model of stability in the Middle East, where an exploding corruption scandal threatens the government of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Chief foreign affairs correspondent Margaret Warner explains.

MARGARET WARNER (Newshour):  Tensions erupted in the streets of Istanbul this evening, as police blasted protesters with water cannon, tear gas and plastic bullets.

The crowd threw rocks and shouted "Catch the thief," a cry aimed squarely at Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, in the eye of a widening corruption probe.  But, earlier today, the prime minister defiantly rejected the calls for his removal.

PRIME MINISTER RECEP ERDOGAN, Turkey (through interpreter):  Let me be clear.  If our nation tells us to leave, we will go.  There's no hesitation there, because that's the office we respect.  But when the people are telling us to stay, we won't listen to someone who is telling us to go.

MARGARET WARNER:  The controversy exploded 10 days ago, when police detained two dozen people, many with Erdogan party ties, in a 14-month-long corruption and bribery investigation.

Officers raided the home of the CEO a major state-owned bank, discovering boxes of Turkish liras.  The video got wide play on Turkish TV.  It was a sudden blow to Erdogan and his Islamist Justice and Development Party, the AKP, who have ruled for 11 years.

Erdogan lashed back, charging that political foes, led by followers of Islamic cleric Fethullah Gulen, and foreign powers were plotting to bring down the government.

RECEP ERDOGAN (through interpreter):  Those who are receiving the support of financial circles and media cannot change the direction of this country.

MARGARET WARNER:  But, eight days later, on Christmas Day, three cabinet ministers resigned after their sons were implicated in the investigation.  Later that day, Erdogan replaced 10 ministers, but again denounced the investigation as conspiracy.

RECEP ERDOGAN (through interpreter):  We are facing an attack against the Turkish people and the Turkish republic which is presented as a corruption probe.

MARGARET WARNER:  His government also tried to head off the probe with a new decree forcing prosecutors to clear their efforts with their superiors.  And last night, the prosecutor leading the probe charged interference and was removed hours later.

But, today, a Turkish court annulled the decree requiring high-level approval for all investigations.  The new controversy comes on the heels of gigantic summertime protests against the government's plans to raze Istanbul's popular Gezi Park to make room for development.  Both have taken an economic toll.  Foreign investors are dumping Turkish bonds, and the Turkish lira has dropped dramatically.

"What's behind the government corruption scandal in Turkey" (Part-2) PBS Newshour 12/27/2013

Excerpt

SUMMARY:  Once regarded as the model for successful Muslim democracy, Turkey is now facing corruption allegations that go right to the heart of the government.  Chief foreign correspondent Margaret Warner joins Judy Woodruff to discuss how Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan is attempting to fight back.