Bitter Turkey finally lifts veto on Danish PM as Nato chiefIan Traynor in Strasbourg
The Observer, Sunday 5 April 2009
Denmark's prime minister was appointed the new Nato chief yesterday following 24 hours of brinkmanship and bitter dispute over religion and liberty that risked turning the western military alliance into the hostage of a clash with Islam.
Anders Fogh Rasmussen was named Nato secretary-general after President Barack Obama intervened in a row between the Dane and President Abdullah Gul of Turkey, which had earlier vetoed the appointment.
As the single big Muslim country within Nato, Turkey had refused to yield on the appointment of Rasmussen because of his defence of free speech during the Danish cartoons crisis three years ago and because Denmark is host to a Kurdish rebel TV station broadcasting to Turkey.
Rasmussen was supported by most leading European states, with the German chancellor, Angela Merkel, his keenest advocate.
The row with Turkey threatened to mar what was planned to be a celebration of Nato's 60th birthday at a summit staged jointly by France and Germany on both sides of the Rhine.
Turkey yielded at the very end after the summit was extended by two hours and heads of state and government met alone to try to strike a deal. A European foreign minister told the Observer that Turkey backed down when it was promised membership of the European Defence Agency, increasing Ankara's clout in the EU's defence affairs.
Despite the final agreement, the dispute meant that the toxic arguments over religious values, blasphemy and liberties that have raged between the western and Islamic worlds since 9/11 have penetrated the inner sanctum of Nato for the first time. Obama and the other 27 national leaders of Nato sought to forge a consensus on the Danish candidate at a dinner in the German spa town of Baden-Baden on Friday night. But Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the Turkish prime minister, refused to budge. Silvio Berlusconi, the Italian prime minister, then spent hours on the phone to Erdogan yesterday morning without a breakthrough.
In a speech in London on Friday, Erdogan accused Rasmussen - who had just announced that he was quitting Danish politics - of playing host to "terrorists" linked to the PKK Kurdish guerrillas fighting the Turkish state. "The mouthpiece of the terrorist organisation in my country is broadcasting from Denmark. How can someone who did not stop this safeguard peace?", Erdogan declared. "Nato is an organisation whose duties are to ensure peace."
The Turkish leader also complained that Rasmussen had spurned his pleas during the 2006 cartoon crisis to make a gesture to defuse the tensions with the Islamic world. "How can those who made no contribution to peace at that time contribute to peace now?"
Olli Rehn, the top EU official in charge of negotiating Turkey's accession to the union, said Erdogan had blundered and that Ankara's threatened veto threw into greater doubt Turkey's commitment to freedom of expression.
Gul, the Bitter Tantrum Throwing Turk ...
Gul, the Bitter Tantrum Throwing Turk ...
by Oracle » Sun Apr 05, 2009 10:51 pm
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by turkkan » Sun Apr 05, 2009 10:58 pm
http://www.spiegel.de/international/eur ... 78,00.html
Turkey got what it wanted from the meeting, roj will be shut down mainly, and a turkish general will be made assistant to Rasmussen as well as lot of key nato posts concerning afghanistan. Looking out for your interests first is nothing to be ashamed about.
Obama Saves NATO Governments from Summit Shame
By Matthias Gebauer in Strasbourg, France
A call made by Barack Obama helped end the impasse. The Turkish government has given up its opposition and Danish Prime Minister Rasmussen will now become the new head of NATO. By doing so, Obama saved Angela Merkel and Nicolas Sarkozy from deep embarrassment at the summit.
Delays in the agenda are part of the routine at NATO summits. When it comes to ending them, though, countries tend to be very punctual. By the last day, most are keen to return home and meetings are shortened and important issues sometimes delayed until the next summit.
On Saturday, though, the decision to be made was too important -- and the summit was forced to go into overtime. Instead of holding a joint press conference at 1 p.m. as originally planned, Secretary General Japp de Hoop Scheffer was only able to appear before journalists after a two-and-a-half hour delay. It was easy to guess what he was going to say, too, given that has successor, Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen, was already standing next to him.
Presidents Sarkozy and Obama with Chancellor Merkel in Strasbourg: The French and German leaders owe a debt to the new American leader.
AFP
Presidents Sarkozy and Obama with Chancellor Merkel in Strasbourg: The French and German leaders owe a debt to the new American leader.
Scheffer and Rasmussen both beamed from the stage. Scheffer said he was proud. Rasmussen congratulated his predecessor on his work. A short time later, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Nicolas Sarkozy also joined in. Sarkozy grinned broadly and could hardly contain his excitement. For her part, Merkel smiled a bit more reservedly.
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The reactions underscored what a tour de force NATO had just undergone. By Friday evening, when Turkey repeated its threat to veto any decision to appoint Rasmussen as the next secretary general, it became clear that a NATO summit being held to celebrate its 60th anniversary threatened to end in fiasco.
But Turkey had been the only country that objected to Rasmussen's selection to head the trans-Atlantic military alliance. Detractors of the Dane, led by Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, felt Rasmussen was unsuitable for the post because he had been unyielding in the dispute over the Muhammad caricatures and preferred to defend the right to free speech rather than apologize. In 2005, the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten sparked outrage in the Muslim world after it published cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad -- an act considered to be blasphemy by Muslims. Rasmussen's unbending stance made it easy for Erdogan to foment criticism against him in Turkey.
The remaining 27 NATO members, especially Germany, France and the United States, all offered their clear backing for Rasmussen, but the summit remained a suspenseful one. The reason being that one of the many peculiar rules of the alliance is that the secretary general must be unanimously elected, meaning that Turkey actually did have the power to reject the choice.
Click on a picture to launch the image gallery (22 Photos)
For quite some time at the summit, it looked like it might not be possible to persuade Turkey. Before dinner in Baden-Baden on Friday, US President Barack Obama, Merkel and even Rasmussen himself each spoke again to Turkish President Abdullah Gül without success. The leaders had hoped to persuade the politically moderate Gül.
For the chancellor, the summit being held in her own country had threatened to become a disaster. On Friday afternoon, Merkel publicly stated, and with unusual clarity, that Rasmussen should be appointed the new NATO chief by evening. German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier also joined ranks and repeated the clear-cut demand.
Without the surprising about-face that took place in the extended negotiations, the summit would have ended up a complete embarrassment for Merkel. In the bizarre logic of NATO summits, where leaders can tend to complain about each other more than negotiate, Merkel miscalculated -- very unusual for a cool tactician like her who normally has a tendency to wait an see than to courageously press ahead.
Just how the breakthrough was achieved is difficult to say. As is the case at most such summits, the leaders immediately hurried off to the airport. Diplomats only said that the US, Germany, France and still-NATO General Secretary Scheffer gathered together in a mini-summit to find a way forward.
Danish prime minister and future NATO chief Anders Fogh Rasmussen: The breakthrough at the summit prompted sudden praise for Turkey.
Getty Images
Danish prime minister and future NATO chief Anders Fogh Rasmussen: The breakthrough at the summit prompted sudden praise for Turkey.
According to diplomatic sources, the decisive impulse came from the US. Obama spoke with Gül and telephoned with Erdogan -- and was able to assuage their concerns. Erdogan said that Obama offered him certain unnamed guarantees -- allegedly they had to do with the Denmark-based Kurdish broadcaster Roj TV as well as with top NATO posts for Turkey.
Neither report could be confirmed by the end of the summit. Both Merkel and Sarkozy, though, praised the result, saying it was demonstration of the alliance's strength. The French president said that the "resoluteness" of the other NATO member states played a major role. "In the end, strength won out," Sarkozy said.
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Once the drama had come to an end, Rasmussen immediately sought to ease the tension, saying he would do "his utmost" for the partnership with Turkey. Relations with the Muslim world, he said, were decisive, and he even promised a review of the television station Roj TV -- a pledge apparently made at the request of Erdogan. Previously, Rasmussen had been unwilling to stop broadcasts in his country of the satellite TV channel.
Despite the relief in NATO, particularly in Berlin and Paris, the butting of heads with Erdogan left a bitter aftertaste. Once again, the US proved the only ally capable of solving fundamental differences within the alliance. Without Obama's telephone diplomacy, it is hard to imagine the summit having reached a satisfactory conclusion.
Indeed, the US president, whose initial goal at the summit had been to soothe trans-Atlantic relations, seemed at times like a marriage counsellor mediating between the different NATO members from the Continent. At the end of the summit, Obama congratulated Rasmussen and praised him as the ideal candidate for the job.
Obama said nothing about his role in the ultimate success of the conference. He modestly thanked Turkey for expressing its "important" concerns. But Obama, as became clear in Strasbourg, is an exceptional political talent -- also when it comes to international relations. And Merkel and Sarkozy owe him one.
Turkey got what it wanted from the meeting, roj will be shut down mainly, and a turkish general will be made assistant to Rasmussen as well as lot of key nato posts concerning afghanistan. Looking out for your interests first is nothing to be ashamed about.
Obama Saves NATO Governments from Summit Shame
By Matthias Gebauer in Strasbourg, France
A call made by Barack Obama helped end the impasse. The Turkish government has given up its opposition and Danish Prime Minister Rasmussen will now become the new head of NATO. By doing so, Obama saved Angela Merkel and Nicolas Sarkozy from deep embarrassment at the summit.
Delays in the agenda are part of the routine at NATO summits. When it comes to ending them, though, countries tend to be very punctual. By the last day, most are keen to return home and meetings are shortened and important issues sometimes delayed until the next summit.
On Saturday, though, the decision to be made was too important -- and the summit was forced to go into overtime. Instead of holding a joint press conference at 1 p.m. as originally planned, Secretary General Japp de Hoop Scheffer was only able to appear before journalists after a two-and-a-half hour delay. It was easy to guess what he was going to say, too, given that has successor, Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen, was already standing next to him.
Presidents Sarkozy and Obama with Chancellor Merkel in Strasbourg: The French and German leaders owe a debt to the new American leader.
AFP
Presidents Sarkozy and Obama with Chancellor Merkel in Strasbourg: The French and German leaders owe a debt to the new American leader.
Scheffer and Rasmussen both beamed from the stage. Scheffer said he was proud. Rasmussen congratulated his predecessor on his work. A short time later, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Nicolas Sarkozy also joined in. Sarkozy grinned broadly and could hardly contain his excitement. For her part, Merkel smiled a bit more reservedly.
REPRINTS
Find out how you can reprint this SPIEGEL ONLINE article in your publication.
The reactions underscored what a tour de force NATO had just undergone. By Friday evening, when Turkey repeated its threat to veto any decision to appoint Rasmussen as the next secretary general, it became clear that a NATO summit being held to celebrate its 60th anniversary threatened to end in fiasco.
But Turkey had been the only country that objected to Rasmussen's selection to head the trans-Atlantic military alliance. Detractors of the Dane, led by Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, felt Rasmussen was unsuitable for the post because he had been unyielding in the dispute over the Muhammad caricatures and preferred to defend the right to free speech rather than apologize. In 2005, the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten sparked outrage in the Muslim world after it published cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad -- an act considered to be blasphemy by Muslims. Rasmussen's unbending stance made it easy for Erdogan to foment criticism against him in Turkey.
The remaining 27 NATO members, especially Germany, France and the United States, all offered their clear backing for Rasmussen, but the summit remained a suspenseful one. The reason being that one of the many peculiar rules of the alliance is that the secretary general must be unanimously elected, meaning that Turkey actually did have the power to reject the choice.
Click on a picture to launch the image gallery (22 Photos)
For quite some time at the summit, it looked like it might not be possible to persuade Turkey. Before dinner in Baden-Baden on Friday, US President Barack Obama, Merkel and even Rasmussen himself each spoke again to Turkish President Abdullah Gül without success. The leaders had hoped to persuade the politically moderate Gül.
For the chancellor, the summit being held in her own country had threatened to become a disaster. On Friday afternoon, Merkel publicly stated, and with unusual clarity, that Rasmussen should be appointed the new NATO chief by evening. German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier also joined ranks and repeated the clear-cut demand.
Without the surprising about-face that took place in the extended negotiations, the summit would have ended up a complete embarrassment for Merkel. In the bizarre logic of NATO summits, where leaders can tend to complain about each other more than negotiate, Merkel miscalculated -- very unusual for a cool tactician like her who normally has a tendency to wait an see than to courageously press ahead.
Just how the breakthrough was achieved is difficult to say. As is the case at most such summits, the leaders immediately hurried off to the airport. Diplomats only said that the US, Germany, France and still-NATO General Secretary Scheffer gathered together in a mini-summit to find a way forward.
Danish prime minister and future NATO chief Anders Fogh Rasmussen: The breakthrough at the summit prompted sudden praise for Turkey.
Getty Images
Danish prime minister and future NATO chief Anders Fogh Rasmussen: The breakthrough at the summit prompted sudden praise for Turkey.
According to diplomatic sources, the decisive impulse came from the US. Obama spoke with Gül and telephoned with Erdogan -- and was able to assuage their concerns. Erdogan said that Obama offered him certain unnamed guarantees -- allegedly they had to do with the Denmark-based Kurdish broadcaster Roj TV as well as with top NATO posts for Turkey.
Neither report could be confirmed by the end of the summit. Both Merkel and Sarkozy, though, praised the result, saying it was demonstration of the alliance's strength. The French president said that the "resoluteness" of the other NATO member states played a major role. "In the end, strength won out," Sarkozy said.
NEWSLETTER
Sign up for Spiegel Online's daily newsletter and get the best of Der Spiegel's and Spiegel Online's international coverage in your In- Box everyday.
Once the drama had come to an end, Rasmussen immediately sought to ease the tension, saying he would do "his utmost" for the partnership with Turkey. Relations with the Muslim world, he said, were decisive, and he even promised a review of the television station Roj TV -- a pledge apparently made at the request of Erdogan. Previously, Rasmussen had been unwilling to stop broadcasts in his country of the satellite TV channel.
Despite the relief in NATO, particularly in Berlin and Paris, the butting of heads with Erdogan left a bitter aftertaste. Once again, the US proved the only ally capable of solving fundamental differences within the alliance. Without Obama's telephone diplomacy, it is hard to imagine the summit having reached a satisfactory conclusion.
Indeed, the US president, whose initial goal at the summit had been to soothe trans-Atlantic relations, seemed at times like a marriage counsellor mediating between the different NATO members from the Continent. At the end of the summit, Obama congratulated Rasmussen and praised him as the ideal candidate for the job.
Obama said nothing about his role in the ultimate success of the conference. He modestly thanked Turkey for expressing its "important" concerns. But Obama, as became clear in Strasbourg, is an exceptional political talent -- also when it comes to international relations. And Merkel and Sarkozy owe him one.
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by turkkan » Sun Apr 05, 2009 11:00 pm
These are the concessions. Work done.
1 Roj tv shutdown.
2 Rasmussen is going to send a special message to muslim world.
3 nato secretary general assistant will be a turk
4 ahead of de-armament will be Turkiye
5 nato's afghanistan representative will be a turk
1 Roj tv shutdown.
2 Rasmussen is going to send a special message to muslim world.
3 nato secretary general assistant will be a turk
4 ahead of de-armament will be Turkiye
5 nato's afghanistan representative will be a turk
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by Oracle » Sun Apr 05, 2009 11:16 pm
turkkan wrote:
The Turkish government has given up its opposition and Danish Prime Minister Rasmussen will now become the new head of NATO.
The remaining 27 NATO members, especially Germany, France and the United States, all offered their clear backing for Rasmussen...
Neither report could be confirmed by the end of the summit. Both Merkel and Sarkozy, though, praised the result, saying it was demonstration of the alliance's strength. The French president said that the "resoluteness" of the other NATO member states played a major role. "In the end, strength won out," Sarkozy said.
Despite the relief in NATO, particularly in Berlin and Paris, the butting of heads with Erdogan left a bitter aftertaste.
Next G20 .... Turkey is out!
As far as support for Turkish-EU accession ... kiss the EU butt goodbye!
Reuters wrote:It had also put the European Union-candidate at odds with France and Germany, which had strongly backed Rasmussen.
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by Oracle » Sun Apr 05, 2009 11:35 pm
Well you know turkkan ... Turkey has been trying to join the EU for what seems like an infinity ... So, can you blame us if we have gotten fed up trying to think up more phrases for why it will 'never see the light of day', 'will get the boot', 'have door slammed in face', 'kiss EU-butt', etc etc etc!
Gawd I have never known such a handicap (hand-in-cap) begging desperation from anyone, than the embarrassing tactics of the desperate beggar Turks ...
... give it a rest and hold your heads up, under those headscarves
Gawd I have never known such a handicap (hand-in-cap) begging desperation from anyone, than the embarrassing tactics of the desperate beggar Turks ...
... give it a rest and hold your heads up, under those headscarves -
Oracle - Leading Contributor
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by YFred » Mon Apr 06, 2009 12:01 am
Oracle wrote:Well you know turkkan ... Turkey has been trying to join the EU for what seems like an infinity ... So, can you blame us if we have gotten fed up trying to think up more phrases for why it will 'never see the light of day', 'will get the boot', 'have door slammed in face', 'kiss EU-butt', etc etc etc!
Gawd I have never known such a handicap (hand-in-cap) begging desperation from anyone, than the embarrassing tactics of the desperate beggar Turks ...
Fancy that!
Obama urges EU to accept Turkey as member .
http://www.todayszaman.com/tz-web/detay ... ink=171542
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by kurupetos » Mon Apr 06, 2009 12:10 am
YFred wrote:Oracle wrote:Well you know turkkan ... Turkey has been trying to join the EU for what seems like an infinity ... So, can you blame us if we have gotten fed up trying to think up more phrases for why it will 'never see the light of day', 'will get the boot', 'have door slammed in face', 'kiss EU-butt', etc etc etc!
Gawd I have never known such a handicap (hand-in-cap) begging desperation from anyone, than the embarrassing tactics of the desperate beggar Turks ...
Fancy that!
Obama urges EU to accept Turkey as member .
http://www.todayszaman.com/tz-web/detay ... ink=171542
Very funny Frederick, Bush was urging too...remember?
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by Oracle » Mon Apr 06, 2009 12:16 am
kurupetos wrote:YFred wrote:Oracle wrote:Well you know turkkan ... Turkey has been trying to join the EU for what seems like an infinity ... So, can you blame us if we have gotten fed up trying to think up more phrases for why it will 'never see the light of day', 'will get the boot', 'have door slammed in face', 'kiss EU-butt', etc etc etc!
Gawd I have never known such a handicap (hand-in-cap) begging desperation from anyone, than the embarrassing tactics of the desperate beggar Turks ...
Fancy that!
Obama urges EU to accept Turkey as member .
http://www.todayszaman.com/tz-web/detay ... ink=171542
Very funny Frederick, Bush was urging too...remember?
They haven't sussed the "Good guy" vs "Bad guy" tactics played out here by the US and EU ...
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