200 Years of Turkish-American Relations

7/28/2019 200 Years of Turkish-American Relations

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200 YEARS OF TURKISH-AMERICANRELATONS*

W . ROBERT PEARSON

I am deeply honored to be with you in the Faculty ofPolitical science of Ankara University, an institution that hascontributed so much to Turkey in he past 150 years. The scholars,students and alumni gathered here are the legacy of Turkey'sreform mov emen t and embody Mustafa Kemal Ata trk 'scommitment to education, modernity, and public service inTurkey.

In 1925 he said: "We do not claim pride for the services werender. But we fnd comfort in the hope that the services we are yetto render will indeed merit pride."This institution and its graduates have certainly lived up tothese words. M any of them have contributed directly to the closeties between our two countries.

*This is the text of Key-Note Speech by H on. W. Robert Pearson, the USAmbassador to Turkey, at the opening session of the Conference on 20 0 thAnniversary of Turkish-American Relations, Ankara, 6-8 November 2000.


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Today, I would like to givc you my perspective on therelations betvveen our two countrics ver the past 200 years; thesehave evolved from a sporadic contacts in the early years of ourrepublic into the close partnership we enjoy today. And I vvouldalso like to teli you how I see them evolving during the upcomingdecades.Our biateral ties got off to an auspicious start on November11, 1800, when the young Naval Captain William Bainbridge sailed

to the Sublime Porte in the fr igate "G eorge Wash ington".According to Captain Bainbridgc's memoirs, when the U.S. vesselarrived in stanbul, a messenge r from the Sultan greeted him andasked if the United States was the land known as the "New World".Upon affirmation, the messenger said that the Sultan had"particularly noted the stars in the United States' flag, w hich heconsidered a good omen of the future of friendly discourse whichwould exist between the two nations, as that of Turkey also was oneof the hcavenly bodies, and therefore concluded there mu st besome analogy between the people, laws, religion, habits, andmanners of the Americans and the Muslims".Harry N. Howard in his book Turkey, the Straits and U.S.Policy, refers to this incident as well, saying "The Am erican flagwas displayed as early as Novemb er 9, 1800, flying from the mastof United States frigate George Washingo n.".While diplomatic relations were not established until 1830,Am erican merehants and missionaries followed rapidly in the wakeof Captain Bainbridge. They were Am erica's frst citizen-diplomatsin Turkey. Several Turkish colleagues told me about how theirlives w ere shaped by the good vvorks and standarts of theinstitutions established by these early Americans in Turkey. Theyplayed an important role in shaping our mutual understanding inthe early 20 t h century. Their legacy goes beyond the schools,

hospitals and forests they nurtured. Their spir i t of m utualunderstanding and human progress through education continuestoday in the work of the Fulbright Com missio n --vvhich ce lebratesits 50 t h anniversary this year and the many private educationalexchanges that bind our societies.After World W ar II, the arrival of another ship, the M issouri,ushered in a new era when it sailed into the Bosphorus in 1946 - a


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pcriod of close security ties that would bring our countries togctheras allies in peace and war. This rclationship was cemcnted duringthe Korean conflict, w hen 50 years ago the Turks fought w ith theAmerican Eigth Army during the Kuneri operation. Since then, wehave trained together, fought togeth er and, most importantly,always talked with each other --even in times of diffculties. Wehave found our comm on interests and followed Aatrk's principleof statecraft, w hich he annunciated in 1930: "The accords w hichthe nations can truly rely on are only those which bind mutualinterests through a thorough cognizance and understanding".

During the past decade, our mutual interests havesignificantly expanded and developed into what President Clintontermed a "strategic partnership" at the Grand National Assembly infront of so many graduates of this Faculty. Security cooperationremains a key com ponent of this partnership, as shown m ostrecently in Turkey's role in establishing peace and security in heBalkans. It has helped reshape NATO the world's most successfulaliance to meet the cha llenges of the 21 s t century. It plays aleading role in bringing peace, stability and development to thenew nations of the Caucasus and Central Asia. And Turkey is ourfull partner in confronting 2 1 s t century threats that range fromweapon s of mass destruction to n arcotics traffcking.

US -Turkish defense coop eration remains robust . TheTurkish government has awarded certain long-term contracts toU.S. contractors. The economic benefits to the Turkish defenseindustrial base in terms of co -production, technology sharing andinvestment is very significant. And this support for sim iliarmodernization refleets our respcct for T urkey's crucial role as apartner for peace in the region.Trade, investment and energy are, hovvever, just as central toour rclationship as defense. In the past six years alone our bilateraltrade has inereased 50 percent. We are Turkey's second largesttrading partn er and third largest sou rce of direct foreigninvestment. Turkey's exports to the US this year (2000) are thefastest growing among T urkey's m ajr trading partners. U.S. firmstoday are playing a majr role in meeting Turkey's domesticenergy demand by investing more than one billion dollars andworking on 19 other projects representing billions in infrastruetureinvestmen t. Building business confdence among Am erican and


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Turkish business is now a critical element in sustaining ourproductive, mutual relationship.This relationship has also developcd well beyond securityand trade. Each year more and more Turks visit the U.S. and moreAmericans are discovering Turkey. A recent Open Skies Treatyamong airliners will only expand such travel and contact. Tenthousand Turks are now studying in U.S. universities, the secondlargest numbe r of any European country. We are working togethcr

to better prepare for natural disasters. A merican and Turkisharcheologists are working together to uncover and preserveTur key's un ique cutural treasures . And in ali these fields rapiddevelop men ts in com mun ications technology, from satel l i tebroadcasting to the Internet, bring our countries closer and closertogether.This is vvhere we are today, and I will leave it to the historiansin this room to more fully describc how w e got to this very positivepoint. But, as the frst U.S. Ambassador to Turkey of the 2 1 s tcentury, I would like to reflect on where we arc going.As I discussed Turkey in Washington, New York, Londonand Brusels before my arrival, I came away w ih three strongimpressions about how outsiders Americans, but Europeans aswell- view Turkey:1. People understand Turkey's importance to the region;2. Business people are excited about Turkey's economic andcom me rcial future; rather than decline in importance in the lastdecade, Turkey has grown in stature politically and economicallyand in terms of regional security; and3. Leaders in business and government are followingdevelopments here closely.They see a Turkey that is retooling its economy, openingmarkets, creating o pportunities, reforming the political system andbetter protecting human rights.They see a Turkey that will be a full mem ber of the EU.Since being named as a candidate for EU m embership lastDecem ber, Turkey has m ade signifcant progress in its European


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vocation. This is a goal that the United States has stronglysupported. In two days, the EU will deliver its AccessionPartnership Document, and then Turkey will present its work planlater in the year. The path to the EU will not be easy, and hurdlesremain. B ut in talking with Turks -offcials and private citizens Ihave heard in their voices their determination to overcome theseobstacles because EU membership will strengthen Turkey andbetter integrate it into the world economy.They see a young, dynamic population that is determined tosucceed on the world stage, interestcd in education and rapidlyincreas ing its capacity to use the techological tools of theinformation society. Right now they see the 1 611 1 largest economyin the world, but they project that Turkey's economic reformscould plt it in the top ten.They see a Turkey whose pace of change will continue toaccelerate, but on a ne laid out by Atatrk when he said; "Themovcment of Turks for centuries has kept a steady course. W e havealways been marching from East to West".They see a country going through a great transition. AsAm ericans know from their own history transitions have neverbeen neat and do not always look particuary nobel. But the effortsof our citizens, civil servants and elected offcials have en suredAmerica's indivisibility and prosperity through change. I amconfdent that the spirit which guided Turks d uring the early yearsof the Repub lic --vvhich I highlighted in my visit to Samsun lastmonth stili burns in young people here, and will help them meetthe challenges of the new century.In short, the United States sees a Turkey whose strategic andpolitical importance will continue to grow, whose economy willprosper, and whose democratic and social structures will grow

stronger. They see a strong and dynamic partner.Thus, I expect that Turkey and the United States willcontinue our strategic partnership. It is my honor to try tostrengthen those areas where w e cooperate and fnd n ew arenas toapply the talents of our two great nations. There will no doubt bedisagreem ents as there are always betvveen friends, and times oftensio n. B ut it is my firm belief that the last 200 years h ave


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providcd a strong foundation --with the durability of one ofSinan's masterpieces, capablc of standing up to occasionalydi fficult weather.Tomorrovv, Americans will go to the polis and elect our newpresident. Many people have asked mc how a Gore administrationor a Bush administration will change our approach to Turkey.While ambassadors should not speculate on such matters, I amccnfident about making the following predict ion: tom orrow'sresults will have litle impact on this imporant relationship. Turkeyand the U .S. have been friends for a long time ; our friendshipbrings us both tangib le benefits and mutual resp onsibilities; andour leaders know this. Last year, President Clinton said: "Turkey'sfuture will be critical in shaping the 2 1 s t century". I am sure thatVice President Gore and Governor Bush would agree.

This is an exciting and cnormously produetive time in theU S.-Turkish relationship. But no rclationship can remain static. In1937, before he was Secretary of State, Dean Rusk said: "If welearn the art of yielding what must be yielded to the changingpresent, we can save the best of the past".Thercfore, as you examine the last 200 years, I hope you willfid those elem ents to discard and those to embrac e, so thatacadem ics two hundred years from now will say Turkey and theU.S. knew how to m ake their historic friendship endure and rise tothe challenges of a new century.Thank you.

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200 Years of Turkish-American Relations