Tan says Obama appreciates Erdogan for his frankess and honesty

Speaking to the Yahoo! News, Turkish Ambassador to the US Namik Tan said that US President Barack Obama had confidence in Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan. In reply to a question on his opinions about "the reasons Obama named Prime Minister Erdogan one of the leaders with whom he enjoys the best working relations in the world," Tan said, "President Obama appreciates Prime Minister Erdogan because he is frank and true to his word. Apart from the NATO radar system that you just mentioned, Turkey has also played an exceptionally positive role in the Arab spring, in keeping it on track. The situation needed someone coming from the Islamic tradition, with a free market economy and democracy, with western institutions. No other country could play that role. There is increasingly strong cooperation between the two ally nations and the mutual trust developed during the handling of many important developments taking place around the world.  A similar relationship exists between Secretary [of State Hillary] Clinton and Foreign Minister [Ahmet] Davutoglu who meet or talk almost every week. Events over the past year have made Turkey an indispensable ally for the US." In response to the reporter's question if Erdogan also admires Obama, Tan said, "I believe, he likes President Obama. And as far as I know, he appreciates him – his genuineness."