NATO bowing to Turkish demands over missile shield a sign of its rising ibnfluence within bloc

President Abdullah Gul was particularly pleased by the acceptance last week at a NATO summit that no country should be named as the target of a planned alliance missile defense system, German news agency DPA reported. If there is a leader pleased with his country's rising influence within NATO following the Lisbon summit, it is Gul, said DPA. Stating that Turkey sees Iran not being named as a diplomatic victory, it said, "Turkey and Iran are regional rivals, but Ankara supports the idea of engaging in dialogue with Tehran instead of sanctions and threats of military attack." The story also quoted a unanimous Turkish diplomatic source as saying, "The Iranians invented chess. If you start playing with them, you have to play to the end."