More questions than answers

The renewal of US-Turkey ties that Özal eagerly sought, but without much success, first became apparent half way through Clinton’s first term. This period was also marked by high-level officials’ interest in Turkey, at least momentarily, as the number of their visits increased when compared to the 1980s. Turkish affairs attracted attention even at the highest level, that of the office of the president, mainly thanks to Grossman’s efforts. This delighted the Turks, who for a very long time felt indignant because Turkish issues were not given the attention which they considered appropriate. ¹ But high-level attention was not present on a steady basis for Turkey had not been upgraded on to the list of foreign countries that demanded constant high-level attention within the US foreign policy-making apparatus. Ankara’s hope for Turkey to become a partner of the US did not materialize. Relations with Turkey continued to be handled and managed at the middle level of under-secretary of state and most of the time at the lower level of the director of the office for southeast Europe and his subordinates within the Bureau of European Affairs. The Turks could only console themselves because Assistant Secretaries Hobrooke and Grossman had a strong presence within the foreign policy-making apparatus, like Richard Perle did in the 1980s.