"Loss of Confidence, Dismay Downgrade U.S-Turkish Ties
By UMIT ENGINSOY, WASHINGTON, And BURAK EGE BEKDIL, ANKARA
Less than a year after top U.S. officials held Turkey up as a democratic model for the Islamic nations and a future European Union member, ties between the governments of President George W. Bush and Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan have disintegrated to a mere working relationship because of widely diverging Middle East agendas.
�In December 2002, President Bush accepted Erdogan at the White House before Erdogan himself became Turkey�s prime minister. Now, as prime minister of Turkey, Erdogan again wants to meet Bush at the White House soon. But it�s not clear if the meeting can take place,� said Bulent Aliriza, director of the Turkey Project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington-based think tank. �This is the summary of where the relationship is standing now.� "
More:DefenseNews.com - Loss of Confidence, Dismay Downgrade U.S-Turkish Ties - 04/11/05 11:56
