AN ACTUAL COLD WAR

Many of Turkey's problems are self-inflicted but Trump is making things worse.  Trump simply has no clue when it comes to the global economy. 

Very interesting at work yesterday, listening to my Greek ladies discussing this situation. They watch ‘the Greek news on satellite TV from Europe’ and about half of them were born within shouting distance of Turkey, and still have family or property over there, so the impacts could be big. 

A US Trade War With Turkey Over a Pastor? Don’t Believe It

excerpt:

If Erdogan’s family name means “brave falcon” in English, the Sultan of Istanbul has certainly had his wings clipped. Or so we are supposed to believe. Trump, who doesn’t give a toss how many innocents are incarcerated or destroyed in the world, is suddenly trying to neuter Turkey – and all because Pastor Andrew Brunson remains under house arrest in there for allegedly supporting the coup plot allegedly organised by Erdogan’s former colleague, the allegedly mesmeric imam Mohamed Fethullah Gulen, currently residing in Trump’s own country.

I don’t believe a word of it. Trump made little fuss about Brunson’s captivity for many months. It took him almost a year and a half to get into a tantrum about the good Christian family man and missionary in Izmir whose chief characteristics appear to be nothing but wholesome: barbecues, picnics, swimming, movies and board games in the evenings, to quote his sister Beth, “the typical American family though living so far away”. American Evangelical Christians were outraged at the arrest of this Godly man – Christianity was on trial, of course – and their favourite president finally tweeted that “this innocent man of faith should be released immediately”.

And so it came to pass that Trump’s wrath was visited upon by the Muslim president who locked up a man who was only doing God’s work in the comfortable coastal city of Izmir. Double US tariffs on steel and aluminium helped to crash the Turkish lira, which has lost 45 per cent of its value this year, although Erdogan might also be blamed for his refusal to raise interest rates against inflation. But let’s be sane. Is all this because of a Presbyterian pastor?

No. For here’s the real list of Erdogan’s crimes. He is buying the Russian S-400 missile system for Turkey. He refuses to accept US support for America’s Kurdish YPG allies. He allowed Islamist fighters to pour over Turkey’s border into Syria along with a lot of weapons, mortars and missiles – to which Washington had no objections at the time since the US was trying to knock Erdogan’s former friend Bashar al-Assad off his perch. Then, after shooting down a Russian aircraft along the Syrian border in November 2015 – for which he was immediately boycotted by Moscow – Erdogan cuddled up to Putin. It was thus the Russians and the Iranians who first warned Erdogan of the impending “Gulen coup” against him in July 2016. They had been listening in to the Turkish military’s internal radio traffic – and tipped off the Sultan of Istanbul.

“Brunson was a simple country boy. You might say a cockeyed optimist, who got himself mixed up in the high stakes game of world diplomacy and international intrigue."

Are Russia's continued attacks considered and act of Cold War-like aggression?

I skimmed over nan’s Post only to have to go back and read it again as I thought we were go to war with a turkey baster.

dave said:
“Brunson was a simple country boy. You might say a cockeyed optimist, who got himself mixed up in the high stakes game of world diplomacy and international intrigue."

 HAHAHA!

As far as allies go, I think Turkey has been pretty meh over the years. 

https://nypost.com/2018/08/20/turkeys-been-a-poor-excuse-for-a-us-ally-for-a-long-time-now/

And now Erdogan has made himself into a strongman, so tension have ratcheted up, not surprisingly.   

I have no problem with the U.S. taking a hard line with Turkey.

I do think Russia is behind some of it.  They are always looking for ways to turn cracks in the NATO alliance into abscesses and, of course, Trump is going to follow whatever orders Putin issues.

Doesn't anyone want to know more about this guy?

https://www.nytimes.com/2016/07/22/opinion/who-was-behind-the-coup-attempt-in-turkey.html

nan said:
Doesn't anyone want to know more about this guy?
https://www.nytimes.com/2016/07/22/opinion/who-was-behind-the-coup-attempt-in-turkey.html

 who cares? That story reads like a conflict between two mob bosses. There's no good guy.

Was gonna post some variation of this.  Erdrogan has been pulling Turkey in an anti-democratic, anti-secular direction for some time now.  That there is a competing political/religious organization out there doesn't inspire me to rally to Erdrogan's defense.

drummerboy said:   who cares? That story reads like a conflict between two mob bosses. There's no good guy.