Turkey thumbs nose at US

[Tricky]

What do we have here? Yet another US ally dropping their support for us. Turkey has now said the US cannot use their bases (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A23284-2003Mar1.html) to mount a northern assault on Iraq. This is a shocking development and a major setback to Bush's war plans, as Turkey has long been considered one of our staunchest allies in the region, but even the promise of generous financial aid did not convince Turkish legislators that it would be in their interests to side with the Americans.

It shows again that this US administration seems to care nothing for world opinion, even among the best friends money can buy. Will Bush not be satisfied until every country on earth hates our guts?

[DanishDynamite]

Well, it's not like they don't have any reason to be worried. I found this bit interesting:But public opinion in this predominantly Muslim nation of 67 million people remains strongly against a war. Many people fear it would be a repeat of the Persian Gulf War of 1991, when Turkey was swamped with half a million refugees and its economy was devastated, ushering in a decade of financial instability that culminated in 2000 with a crisis in which the currency collapsed and unemployment skyrocketed.

[Nikk]

Originally posted by DanishDynamite
Well, it's not like they don't have any reason to be worried. I found this bit interesting:

The Turks are in an unenviable position. They desperately want to join the EU but if they support the US then they earn the enmity of France and Germany. Conversely they don't want to upset the US. Plus they don't trust the US to come up with the financial goods. Either way a war will encourage Iraqi and Turkish Kurds to push for an independent state and might also encourage the growth of the Islamic party.

I hate to say it but there are times when you have to feel sorry for politicians!

[Questioninggeller]

I guess they don't consider Iraq a threat like the US does, huh well isn't that interesting? I guess turkey does consider them a threat, Iran isn't going to rush into this war, and nor does any other country that does already have US bases there.

[Smalso]

In keeping with his anyone-not-with-us-is-against-us doctrine, does Bush now consider Turkey an ally of terrorists?