NEW AUTHORITIES - NEW AIMS

-Mr Ambassador, in his first speech in parliament as head of state Turkey's 11th president, Abdullah Gul, described the development of ties with the Turkic-speaking states as "Ankara's historic duty". What exactly did the head of state mean by this?

- The development of ties with Turkic-speaking states was and remains a priority in Turkey's foreign policy. It is enough to look at the programme of the country's new, 60th government, which clearly states the intention to develop and expand links with the Turkic world. Unlike under previous governments, this subject has for the first time been given an entry of its own, which is very pleasing of course. The intention is stressed to develop relations with Azerbaijan and also with Turkish Cypriots, Iraqi Turcomans and the Turkic community on the Balkan peninsula. During the last government Ankara faced pressing foreign policy issues such as carrying out former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan's plan to settle the Cyprus problem, the start of talks on EU entry and the deterioration in the situation in the regions bordering Iraq, connected with the second phase of US military action in the Persian Gulf region. As a result, the Turkish government, for all that it wanted to, could not give the necessary attention to the development of relations with the Turkic world. The same can be said for Abdullah Gul who was Turkey's foreign minister at that time. His workload forced him to postpone visits to Baku several times and the future head of state managed to visit Baku only during international events such as the meeting of foreign ministers of the Organization of the Islamic Conference. 

However, in the light of the latest political changes in Turkey, I think the situation will change. The post of head of state does not require constant travelling, which was the case for the minister. Abdullah Gul will have more free time and, therefore, opportunities to pay attention to the Turkic-speaking world. 

- Abdullah Gul is someone who has visited Azerbaijan several times and is well-informed about the problems of the South Caucasus region. What do you think will be the consequences for neighbouring countries of his election as head of state? Will Turkey's relations with Azerbaijan change?

- Turkey's relations with Azerbaijan have deep historical roots and can be described as "strategic". The post of head of state will allow Abdullah Gul to support the development of bilateral relations with Azerbaijan not only at the head-of-state level, but also to supervise the government's work in this area. As someone with a deep knowledge of diplomacy, Abdullah Gul will help the expansion of political, economic and cultural links with the countries of the region, more than anyone else could. It should not be forgotten that many international projects recently implemented in the region were drawn up with Abdullah Gul's direct involvement.

- Mr Ambassador, what do you think are the advantages of the election of a professional diplomat as Turkey's head of state? Could you draw parallels in this context between the former head of state, Ahmet Necdet Sezer, who had been head of the Constitutional Court, and Abdullah Gul?

- Each of Turkey's presidents is equally sacred to us and we do not have the right to distinguish between them. However, Abdullah Gul's diplomatic past, his direct participation in events in Turkey's state life and his work in the economic sphere (he taught economics for a long time and worked at the Islamic Development Bank) are bound to have an effect on his work. He is both an economist and a politician.

I would like to note that the main difference between the current head of state and his predecessor is that Abdullah Gul is someone who feels the aspirations of the people deeply. He is interested in how ordinary citizens live, whether they can bring home their daily bread, how beneficial privatization has been for the country's economy, what must be done to increase exports or develop tourism in Turkey. At the same time he thinks through every nuance of regional projects, be they the Baku - Tbilisi - Ceyhan oil pipeline or the Baku - Tbilisi - Erzurum gas pipeline. Gul understands all this both as a diplomat and an economist. However, a judge cannot know this. Judges in Turkey are forbidden to "mix with the people".

- An internal political crisis broke out in Turkey in April over the election of the head of state. This led to the decision to hold extraordinary parliamentary elections and the subsequent election of the president. Do you think Abdullah Gul's victory in the presidential elections is the logical end to the political crisis?

- I am very optimistic about the further development of the domestic political situation in Turkey. The democratic nature of the extraordinary parliamentary elections in Turkey on 22 July 2007 allows this optimism. The elections were open and transparent. The election atmosphere was more colourful than in many European countries. You could see political tolerance during the election campaign in Turkey. Advertisements for diametrically opposed political parties were stuck to the same pillars. No-one tried to tear down their opponents' posters or stick their proclamations on top of other people's. The results of such elections say a great deal. Forty-seven per cent of the voters chose one party and, most important, the votes of the majority of citizens were represented in parliament. That is, the number of voters whose votes remained unrepresented in parliament because their parties failed to cross the 7-per-cent election threshold was quite low. Only the Democratic Party received just over 5 per cent and its votes were distributed amongst other parties. 

I would like to say that the current composition of the Turkish parliament is "as democratic as possible"; almost all the country's leading parties are represented here. So the president, elected by the current parliament, enjoys maximum public support. It is simply inappropriate to talk of his illegitimacy. Every political structure that recognizes the foundations of the democratic regime is obliged to respect the head of state. Objections on this issue are inappropriate. Respect for the president is a state tradition in Turkey.

- Comments were made in the Armenian press that after Abdullah Gul's election as Turkey's president, Ankara would change its foreign policy to help integration into the European Union. What do you think of such comments?

- Turkey's foreign policy is determined by the government, not the president. Of course, the support of the head of state on foreign policy issues has a positive effect on the cabinet's work.

As for European Union membership, the conditions for EU entry do not include any obligations on opening borders with a state that has occupied a neighbouring country. Ankara adheres to the criteria adopted in Copenhagen for candidates for EU membership, but an obligation to open the border with Armenia is not one of them. Some pro-Armenian Euro-pean politicians may be talking about this, but this is not reflected in the European Union's overall policy.

The EU does in fact favour neighbourly relations with all neighbours and tries to develop them as much as possible. How-ever, when it concerns a neighbour who makes territorial claims on Turkey, you won't change anything.

- In conclusion, I would like to know to which country the 11th president will make his first foreign visit? Could it be Azerbaijan?

It is too early to say. Some time is needed for the new president to settle in. He has not yet even managed to appoint his advisers. His work programme has not been set yet. 

In this context it is worth noting Abdullah Gul's sincere attachment to the Turkic world. It is not yet known whether his first or second visit will be to Baku. Expect surprises.