Clinton holds up Turkey as Islamic role model

Published on Saturday 7 March 2009 21:19

US SECRETARY of State Hillary Clinton yesterday met leaders of Turkey, a strategic ally that is key to resolving several US problems including moving its forces out of Iraq, blocking Iran's nuclear ambitions and turning around the war in Afghanistan.

Clinton talked to Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan for nearly two hours before visiting the mausoleum of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the founder of modern Turkey. There she recalled being in Ankara during her husband's presidency and said she had returned to help President Barack Obama promote "the work the US and Turkey must do to forge peace, prosperity and progress".

Erdogan's office said the two discussed bilateral relations, the Middle East, Iraq, Afghanistan and combating terror.

Turkey has been a supply route for US troops in Iraq and Afghanistan and relations have improved after hitting a low in 2003 when Turkey refused to allow American forces to use its territory as a staging ground for the invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein.

Turkey has said it is ready to serve as an exit route for US troops pulling out of Iraq. The southern Incirlik air base has been used for transfer of US troops and equipment to Iraq and to Afghanistan.

Turkey, meanwhile, wants the US administration to prevent Congress from labelling the killing of up to 1.5 million Armenians by Turks a century ago as genocide. Turkey says the toll has been inflated.