Participants discuss Turkey's growing power in Obama panel

Participants of a panel held in Istanbul about expectations from the second term in office of US President Barack Obama agreed that the relations between Turkey and the US will be further improved while Turkey continues to grow stronger and more prominent in its region in the coming years. The panel, titled "Second term of US President Barack Obama: What Should We Expect?" was held on Tuesday in an Istanbul hotel jointly by the Turkish Confederation of Businessmen and Industrialists (TUSKON) and the Center for American Progress. The panel sought to find out what direction the relations between Turkey and the US will be heading during Obama's second term. TUSKON Deputy Chairwoman Rana Tezcan Acikgoz delivered the inauguration speech of the panel, saying that Turkey has become a "global citizen," thanks to a recent improvement in its economy. "Turkey is becoming an active player in its field … We believe that the economic field is something on which we [Turkey and the US] may cooperate easily and strongly. That's why we have sent several delegations to the US. More than 400 Turkish businessmen paid visits to 23 US states last year. Mutual relations are the best way for parties to understand one another," she stated. Tom Perriello, chairman of the Center for American Progress, noted that Turkey is important for the US now more than ever. "Turkey has become more important than ever for political discussions in the US," he said, adding that the US will focus more on its relations with Turkey during Obama's second term. "There are some issues inherited by us from the past. We have a strong will and demand to open a new century along with our friends and neighbors. We hope that we may find better solutions to longstanding problems of the world and produce new partnerships. Turkey has never been this important. Turkey's partnership is considered very important in the US," he stressed. The deputy chairman of the Center for American Progress, Winnie Stachelberg, said the political agenda pursued by the Obama administration impacted on the foreign policies of many countries during the president's first term in office and he expects this to continue in Obama's second term. "Americans lent a strong support to Obama [in his presidential bid] despite problems in economy. The president ensured an unprecedented alliance in national policies. This was not the case in the past," he said. Stachelberg also said Obama will seek to strengthen the middle class in the US in his second term. Today's Zaman Editor-in-Chief Bulent Kenes also delivered a speech at the panel. He said the relations between Turkey and the US, which are two distant yet friendly countries, have always been positive and constructive despite occasional ups and downs. "Thanks to its recent progress in democratization and the elimination of the military's influence in politics, Turkey has emerged as a viable example of how the values shared by the American people -- such as a democratic political system, a free market economy, fundamental rights and freedoms, and universal humanitarian values -- can coexist peacefully with Islamic teachings of peace and harmony," Kenes said. The editor-in-chief also said Ankara had strong expectations that Washington would quickly change its insensitive approach to the Syrian crisis, which had marked the last one-and-a-half years of Obama's first presidential term. "The fact that it has not yet been fulfilled has resulted in a big disappointment in Ankara," he said, and added that Turkey hopes to see Washington lend unconditional support to democracy in Turkey. "Also, in its attempt to solve the terrorist Kurdistan Workers' Party [PKK] and Kurdish issues, the Turkish government will certainly need both internal and external support in the face of potential efforts to sabotage the process," Kenes added.