NOW, ISLAMIST TURKEY MOVES CLOSER TO RUSSIA!

A WEEK AFTER BANNING ISRAEL FROM NATO MANEUVERS, AND SIGNING A MILITARY TREATY WITH SYRIAN, TURKEY HAS MADE A DEAL WITH RUSSIA:

Russia to conduct geological exploration in Turkey’s Black Sea

Turkey has decided to allow geological exploration in its Black Sea economic zone as part of the South Stream project, Russia’s Itar-Tass news agency claimed on Tuesday.

According to the agency’s report, President Abdullah Gül had a telephone conversation with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev on Monday. “In accordance with the earlier understandings reached at the top and high levels, the Turkish government has made all the necessary decisions to issue permissions for geological exploration in Turkey’s exclusive economic zone in the Black Sea for the sake of the South Stream gas pipeline project,” Gül was reported as saying to Medvedev. In response to Gül, Medvedev reportedly said the decision will facilitate the further strengthening of the strategic relations between Russia and Turkey.

MORE HERE: Ankara moves toward ‘privileged partnership’ with Moscow

Turkey, which has already announced its intention to hold a joint cabinet meeting with Russia similar to those recently held with Iraq and Syria, hopes to hold such a meeting with its Black Sea neighbor in early December.

“We have proposed a similar step [to the joint cabinet meetings with Syria and Iraq] with Russia, but there is nothing being implemented at the moment,” Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said last week before departing for a visit to Iraq, during which he and the nine ministers accompanying him held a joint cabinet meeting with the Iraqi government. Erdoğan and his Iraqi counterpart, Nouri al-Maliki, co-chaired the meeting of the Turkish-Iraqi High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council.

Earlier last week, a ministerial-level meeting of the Turkish-Syrian High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council was held in the Syrian city of Aleppo and the Turkish city of Gaziantep. At the time, Erdoğan said an agreement to initiate a similar mechanism with Russia was signed when Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin visited Ankara in August, when Turkey and Russia signed about 20 agreements on cooperation in a number of areas, including, most notably, energy. “We will put into force a similar mechanism with Russia.”

The timing of the meeting planned to be held with Russia has been found particularly interesting as it comes just before a December summit of the European Council. Observers suggest that the planned meeting with Russia is a message to European Union members who offer a “privileged partnership” to Turkey instead of full EU membership. Turkey will show how a privileged partnership is constituted through the meeting with Russia, the same observers argue. Turkey firmly rejects any option that falls short of full EU membership.

(TAB'S PREVIOUS POSTS ON TURKEY HERE.)

• OBAMA IS APPEASING PUTIN AS PUTIN EXPANDS RUSSIAN HEGEMONY.

• AND TURKEY IS DRIFTING TOWRD THE RUSSO-IRANIAN AXIS.

• THIS ISN'T SMART DIPLOMACY - UNLESS YOU THINK CEDING TO PUTIN IS SMART.

• OBAMA IS EITHER THE DUMMEST PRESIDENT EVER OR HE WANTS THE WEST TO LOSE.

• HIS SUPPORTERS TELL US HE'S VERY SMART.

• SO I GUESS OBAMA MUST WANT THE WEST TO LOSE.