Understanding anti-Americanism in Turkey

Understanding anti-Americanism in Turkey

Anti-American sentiment among Turkish people seems to have made a world record in the last year with only 9 percent of the people viewing the US favorably. Growing anti-Americanism is a symptom of the mismanaging of Turkish-American relations, which have not been adapted to the changing post-Cold War situation. At the beginning of the new period, over the occupation of Kuwait by Saddam Hussein in 1990, a new rationale for an alliance was formulated by the efforts of Turgut Ozal. In time, however, allies Turkey and the US, first “providing comfort” to the Kurds in the north and then “posing to strike” against Saddam Hussein’s army, came to see that they do not necessarily share a common vision for the region. As a result, a mutual distrust developed, especially among the security sectors of both sides supposedly cooperating in safeguarding and supervising northern Iraq. Given membership in NATO and Turkey’s frontline position in the East-West rivalry, Turkish officers used to have a highly positive view of the US. During the Cold War years, the army cadets in Turkey were educated with a sense of alliance solidarity. The brightest of them were sent to US military schools and those serving in NATO posts were the most likely to get promoted. Yet for quite some time this sense of Cold War solidarity has gone. No longer do the militaries of both nations view each other as comrades in arms. In this, the Iraq question played a significant role. Turning the term “alliance” into mere rhetoric was the occupation of Iraq by American forces with the support of the Kurdish elements in 2003 as Turkey remained non-cooperative, not allowing passage of American troops. From then on the US was accused of plotting to establish an independent Kurdish state in northern Iraq at the expense of Turkey’s national interests. Incidents like the one in Sulaimaniya, where several Turkish officers were held and interrogated by American troops, magnified the distrust of the US among Turks in general as well as the Turkish military. Novels were published while TV serials and movies were produced telling stories of American invasions of Turkey and vice versa. The public mood moved by a nationalist defensiveness was deeply penetrated by these cultural activities that normalized hostility, an inconceivable phenomenon of the past, between the two countries. Eventually, we ended up with a public opinion suggesting that 31 percent of the population believed in the possibility of a US invasion of Turkey. Anti-Western and anti-American sentiments have become more visible not only among people at large but in the Turkish military as well. In the context of Turkey’s bid to join the EU and the hard-to-swallow political reforms and fearful of losing their privileged position within the system, a Third-Worldist, anti-Western, anti-imperialistic and anti-globalization ideological currency with a fixation on full independence has gained ground in the military circles. Apart from this, anti-Americanism has ideological roots in Turkey. The Turkish left has a tradition of anti-American sentiment dating back to the 1960s. The new leftist movements of the late 1960s distinguished themselves with a strong anti-American and anti-NATO position. This was symbolized by an incident at the Middle East Technical University (METU) campus in 1969 when the car of the US ambassador was set on fire, a leftist legend. In the 1970s, when the CHP under the leadership of Bulent Ecevit had a brief period in government, Turkish-American relations were marked by a degree of tension, first over the issue of opium and then the Cyprus intervention. Ecevit always had some bitterness towards the US, certainly inspired by his ideological outlook. This leftist tradition, blended with a newly discovered nationalism, has been revived in recent years, particularly as part of the opposition to globalization, the war in Iraq and general American policy towards the Middle East. Islamism too breeds a high degree of anti-Americanism since such an ideological position is to a large extent constructed by its opposition to the west, including the US. In their anti-American stand, issues like the US policy towards Islam and Islamic countries after 9/11, intervention in Afghanistan and occupation of Iraq play a central role. The view that the fight against terrorism was deliberately directed against Islam finds supporters among many Muslims who are not Islamists at all. American support of Israel and perceived Jewish influence over the policies of the US are also important ingredients of Islamist discourse fueling and justifying their anti-American stand. The neo-Kemalists, suspicious of anything “foreign” and preoccupied with conspiracy theories against Turkey, think the US and the West, in general, are plotting to revive the Treaty of Sèvres. A Kurdish entity in northern Iraq under the protection of the US is seen as a prelude to dividing Turkey into ethnic pieces. The liberals with favorable views towards the US have also become disappointed with the American attitude after 9/11 that seemed to be ready to sacrifice liberties for security, encouraging and vindicating the anti-reform groups in Turkey. While struggling to overcome resistance to the EU-motivated reforms, the liberals are concerned that the US has emerged as a bad example justifying sacrifices in the fields of liberties, human rights, and democratization. The key to open a new period in Turkish-American relations requires addressing the northern Iraq and Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) issue on the part of the Americans and dealing with the provoked nationalism on the part of the Turkish government; each will ease the other.

02.07.2007