Page 1 of 2 Saudi monarch woos Turkey's Islamists
By M K Bhadrakumar
When King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz visited Turkey in August last year, it was 40
years since a Saudi monarch had last visited. When the 83-year-old monarch
arrived in Ankara on Saturday with an entourage of 11 planes for his second
visit in a year, it was an extraordinary overture.
But it was comprehensible. Middle East politics have assumed an unprecedented
level of criticality. The Saudis feel the need to
visualize Turkey as a pillar of strength in the volatile regional environment.
Riyadh is signaling Turkey's strategic role. A historical paradox must be
noted: Saudi Arabia was the cradle of the "Arab revolt" that sounded the death
knell of the Ottoman Empire. It now solicits Turkey's regional role.
Turkey, too, is ready to return to the Muslim world after nearly a century's
absence. Finding its European Union membership claims stalled, Turkey edges
away from Europe.
Addressing the King Abdulaziz University in Jeddah in February 2006 in his
capacity as deputy prime minister and foreign minister in the ruling Justice
and Development Party (AKP) government at that time, now-president Abdullah Gul
said unequivocally, "Turkey's foundations are in Europe and we have always been
part of Europe. But Turkey is more than Europe! We are part of the Muslim world
and we also belong to the revered traditions of the East. This unique position
is our important asset, because it allows us to serve both worlds. Let no one
be in doubt that we will fulfill this historic role and advance our common
aspirations."
Gul was speaking hardly five months ahead of the path-breaking visit by the
Saudi monarch to Turkey. Saudi Arabia and Turkey are both transforming. En
route to Ankara last week, King Abdullah was received at the Vatican by Pope
Benedict XVI in the first audience ever by a pontiff with a Saudi monarch.
Of course, change comes slowly. US columnist Thomas Friedman made an
interesting point that King Abdullah could visit the Vatican, but the "pope
can't visit the king of Saudi Arabia in the Vatican of Islam - Mecca", as
non-Muslims aren't allowed there. Compared to Saudi Arabia, though, Turkey is
transforming at a faster pace.
Religious bonds
A year ago, when King Abdullah arrived in Ankara, the head of protocol, Oya
Turzcugolu, met him at the steps of the plane but the king refrained from
shaking her hand. President Ahmet Necdet Sezer nonetheless served wine at the
state banquet. Now, just a year later, Turkey is no longer fanatically wedded
to militant secularism, and Gul doesn't serve wine.
In all of Turkey's history, though the Ottoman state directed the "emir ul Haj"
(meaning they were the custodians over the pilgrimage), none of the Ottoman
sultans ever performed the pilgrimage, except for Cem Sultan. The presidents of
the Turkish republic also scrupulously followed the tradition. Gul will most
certainly break that tradition.
Indeed, an agenda item for King Abdullah's parleys in Ankara related to the
Turkish request for an increased quota for the haj pilgrimage. An estimated
120,000 Turks performed haj last year, whereas almost thrice that number had
applied. Turkey's official pilgrim quota is only 70,000, though the Saudis are
keen to accommodate an increased number. There is a strong demand in Turkey, a
country that outright banned haj pilgrimages till 1947.
A growing mutual respect for the different interpretations of Islam partly
explains the new proximity (Ottoman Turks used to execute Wahhabis). Saudi
Arabia is pleased that observant Muslims are becoming assertive in Turkish
society. The Saudi regime feels closeness to the government led by the Islamist
AKP that it never could with Turkey's staunchly secularist establishment.
But the political establishments of the two countries have a lot of distance to
cover. The AKP's decision to honor the visiting Saudi king with the state medal
proved controversial. The Kemalist camp bristled. The opposition Republican
People's Party (CHP) leader Onur Oymen alleged the decision was a "clear
indicator" of the AKP's intention to turn Turkey into an Islamic republic.
"Why should we honor Saudi Arabia? We don't harbor hostility toward that
country, but we see no reason for showing sentimentality either," Oymen acidly
remarked. He alleged the AKP was striving to bring Turkey "closer to the
Islamic countries". Another prominent CHP leader, Inal Batu, a former diplomat,
commented that "there are question marks hanging over this government's
intention toward the secularist principles".
The antipathy toward Saudi Arabia is not confined to the political corridors.
Despite 400 years of common history and religious and cultural links, Turkish
civil society has remained coldly, disdainfully indifferent toward Saudi
Arabia. It is in the Anatolian heartland of Turkey - among peasants, laborers,
small traders and artisans - rather than in the cosmopolitan environs of
Istanbul or Izmir that the gradual warming toward Saudi Arabia is palpable.
The Iran question
But King Abdullah's decision to visit Turkey for a second time was largely
motivated by politics. The Iran question figures at the top. Riyadh is deeply
disturbed by Iran's growing influence in the region. In the Saudi reading of
the region's common history, Ottoman Turkey provided the bulwark against the
ambitions of Persia's Safavi dynasty. Ideally, the Saudis would want history to
repeat itself. But the Turkey-Iran relationship cannot be put back into a
historical straightjacket. Turkish attitudes toward Iran have changed in the
recent past.
The AKP government's leanings toward the Islamic world include Iran and a
robust effort is on to build bilateral cooperation. Trade touching an all-time
high level of US$7 billion may soon reach double digits. Ankara envisages a big
role for Iran in its ambition to become the region's "energy hub". Disregarding
US pressure, Ankara has pressed ahead with an agreement for the transit of
Iranian gas to Europe.
Tehran for its part is thankful for Turkey's position that Iran's nuclear issue
must be resolved through diplomatic means.
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