Keep an eye on Obama's stop in Turkey

Posted By Joshua Keating Tuesday, March 31, 2009 - 12:25 PM Share

Gideon Rachman says that the most important stop on Obama's European tour is not the well-scripted meeting in London, but Turkey:

This is the one bit of the trip that it is very hard to script in advance - and the stakes are very high. Will Obama use his speech to the Turkish parliament to make the long-promised big statement on the relationship between the West and the Islamic world? Can he do anything to repair the damage in the US-Turkish relationship and turn around the desperate and dangerous unpopularity of the US there? What role might Turkey play over Iran or the Middle East peace process? How will the president address the issue of Armenia?
Congress is pushing for a resolution accusing Turkey of having committed genocide against the Armenians. Candidate Obama sounded sympathetic to the Armenian lobby. But President Obama will be desperate not to inflict any further damage on US-Turkish relations.
It is all very tricky and intriuging stuff.

EXPLORE:EUROPE, MIDDLE EAST, OBAMA ADMINISTRATION

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