Erdogan: Turkey against all terror groups
Turkey is against all types of terrorism and terror groups, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said following Western media allegations that the country has been supporting ISIL militants.
Erdogan's comments came on Wednesday hours after Western media published the claims.
In an address to the Confederation of Turkish Tradesmen and Craftsmen, one of the most powerful non-governmental organizations in Turkey, Erdogan said: "We don't accept a concept like 'Islamic terrorism'.
"No one should equate Islam - the religion of peace - with terror."
He went on: "We cannot accept a concept like 'Sunni terror' or 'Shiite terror'. What is really important to us is that Islam and the principles of our religion are certain on these subjects."
"Some international media institutions try to equate Turkey with terrorism. There is no such thing as Turkey offering weapons and medical aid to terror groups."
'Perception management'
Referring to the 49 Turkish hostages held in Iraq by ISIL since June, Erdogan said: "Their fate is more important to us than everything."
In relation to his scheduled visit to the New York headquarters of the UN General Assembly for an international meeting on Monday, the President said: "We will discuss this attempt at 'perception management' with our interlocutors in bilateral meetings."
Referring to Turkey's 40-year battle against PKK terrorism, and the country's efforts to resolve it via its "solution process", he said: "Turkey was left alone in its fight against terrorism.
"The murders and mass killings were ignored by several countries and others even supported this terrorism."
"They now understand - too late - that one day such terrorism would turn its gun against them," he said.
'Political motives'
He continued: "Now they understand that we were right, but we will see how far they will support us in this fight.
"They've seen our rightfulness in Iraq and Syria. Turkey is against all types of terrorism, no matter where it comes from."
Erdogan also criticized credit rating agencies which have given negative evaluations of the Turkish economy, saying their views were based on political motives rather than economic realities.
He said: "We have already cut relations with one of these rating agencies (Standard and Poor's) when I was prime minister.
"We pay them money - as we are a member, we pay an annual fee to them. Turkey may cut its relations with two more of them, because we did not develop our economy with their help."
Moody's and Fitch, two New York-based international credit rating agencies, recently rated Turkey "negative" and "stable" respectively in August.
Erdogan: Turkey against all terror groups | General | Worldbulletin News
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Turkey remains reluctant to U.S. anti-ISIL coalition
When Washington takes its bombing campaign against ISIL fighters into Syria, the most it can probably hope for from one of its closest allies in the region will be grudging consent.
Turkey, a NATO member with a big U.S. airbase and long borders with both Iraq and Syria, has made clear that it is still unconvinced by U.S. President Barack Obama's plans to bomb ISIL fighters in two of its neighbours.
While Washington won backing last week for a military coalition from 10 Arab nations - Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon and six Gulf states including rich rivals Saudi Arabia and Qatar - Turkey attended the talks but did not sign up.
President Tayyip Erdogan and Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, architects of a foreign policy which envisages Sunni Muslim Turkey as a regional power, are reluctant to engage in action they fear could strengthen their enemy, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, and exacerbate sectarian tensions in Iraq.
"It's a very complicated balancing act. Turkey is trying to satisfy its U.S. partner without extending full collaboration. They will come under intensifying pressure but will find it very difficult to block U.S. strategy," said Fadi Hakura, Turkey analyst at the London-based think-tank Chatham House.
"It's a coalition of the unwilling and the apathetic. Turkey and most Arab countries supposedly part of this coalition are deeply sceptical of U.S. intentions in the region."
Turkey's role is likely to be limited, U.S. and Turkish officials say, to stemming the flow of foreign fighters crossing its borders, helping cut off ISIL's finances and providing humanitarian and logistical support.
There are no plans, Turkish officials have said, to allow the U.S. airbase in the southern town of Incirlik to be used for air strikes. Pro-government newspapers have welcomed Ankara's reluctance, drawing parallels to 2003, when Turkey's parliament rejected a U.S. request to use Turkish territory to invade Iraq.
LONG GAME
"Turkey has to play the long game, and right now the strategy disclosed by the U.S. government does not give confidence that the region will be stabilised," said Sinan Ulgen, head of the Centre for Economics and Foreign Policy Studies in Istanbul.
"Just hitting ISIS won't solve anything ... The recent history of Western intervention has amply demonstrated this. Look at where Libya stands today, at where Afghanistan stands today, at where Iraq stands today," he said.
"ISIL is actually a bigger threat to Turkey than to the United States, so there is every incentive for Ankara to be part of this coalition. But right now there is no big overlap about its strategic direction."
When ISIL fighters surged into northern Iraq in June, they captured 46 Turkish hostages in the city of Mosul, including diplomats, soldiers and children. Turkish officials say the plight of the hostages is one reason they are reluctant to sign on publicly to a campaign against the fighters.
But government officials make little secret that their misgivings about U.S. action go deeper than concern for the captives. Davutoglu said last week U.S. action alone would not be enough to bring stability.
Turkey has been one of the leading backers of the opposition to Assad in Syria's civil war, leaving it open to accusations that it turned a blind eye to the rise of radicals among Assad's mainly Sunni Muslim opponents, including ISIL fighters.
Former U.S. ambassador to Turkey Francis Ricciardone told a media call in Washington last week that Turkey, in its eagerness to bolster Assad's opponents, had worked with groups in the past like Nusra Front, which Washington considered "beyond the pale".
CONDUIT FOR AID
Ankara rejects any suggestion that it is to blame for ISIL's rise, and pins responsibility firmly on Assad, for policies that drove Syria's Sunni majority to radicalism.
"Our position is clear, we are against all forms of radicalisation and activity which may affect the stability and prosperity of our region," Davutoglu said on Tuesday during a visit to Cyprus.
"Those who accuse Turkey ... must know that the main responsibility for all these massacres in the region is the Assad regime, which killed its people and opened the way for radicalisation ... as well as the sectarian policies in Iraq."
While Turkey is unlikely to allow its bases to be used for U.S. air strikes, it can still play a role in U.S. plans by serving as a conduit for aid to other Sunni opponents of Assad, which Washington sees as a counterforce to ISIL.
Ankara has long called for Washington to do more to help the "moderate" Syrian rebels. One Western diplomat said it was wise of Washington to emphasise that role in dealings with Ankara.
"Backing the Syrian opposition is key to legitimising the operations (in Ankara's eyes). So far the U.S. is reading this situation very well," said the diplomat, adding Erdogan would ultimately not want to jeopardise ties with Washington.
U.S. officials say they still have a lot to discuss with Turkey, even if it will not lend its bases for an air campaign.
"There are several issues. One is the foreign fighters. Their border has been quite porous. There has been improvement but additional improvement needs to be made," said an official travelling with Secretary of State John Kerry last week.
If bombing worsens the refugee crisis, much of that will fall on Turkey's shoulders. Erdogan spoke this week of plans to establish a "buffer zone" along the border, a suggestion that Ankara plans to control future refugee flows more closely.
Turkey remains reluctant to U.S. anti-ISIL coalition | Turkey | Worldbulletin News
