Yazar arşivleri: Ali Tuygan

Bilinmeyen adlı kullanıcının avatarı

Ali Tuygan hakkında

Ali Tuygan is a graduate of the Faculty of Political Sciences of Ankara University. He joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in January 1967. Between various positions in Ankara, he served at the Turkish Embassy in Brussels, NATO International Staff, Turkish Embassies in Washington and Baghdad, and the Turkish Delegation to NATO. From 1986 to 1989 he was the Principal Private Secretary to the President of the Republic. He then served as ambassador to Ottawa, Riyadh, and Athens. In 1997 he was honored with a decoration by the Italian President. Between these assignments abroad he served twice as Deputy Undersecretary for Political Affairs. In 2004 he was appointed Undersecretary where he remained until the end of 2006 before going to his last foreign assignment as Ambassador to UNESCO. He retired in 2009. In April 2013 he published a book entitled “Gönüllü Diplomat, Dışişlerinde Kırk Yıl” (“Diplomat by Choice, Forty Years in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs”) in which he elaborated on the diplomatic profession and the main issues on the global agenda. He has published articles in Turkish periodicals and newspapers.

Revisiting the Past

Bir Cevap Yazın

June 3, 2024

Last week witnessed some confusion over the future of the war in Gaza and the prospects for peace. Looking at what has transpired since the October 7 Hamas attack, this was no surprise. On Friday, President Biden announced that after intensive diplomacy carried out by his team and his many conversations with leaders of Israel, Qatar, Egypt, and other Middle Eastern countries, Israel has offered a comprehensive new proposal, a roadmap to an enduring ceasefire, and the release of all hostages.

Okumaya devam et →

Israel’s Time of Troubles

Bir Cevap Yazın

May 27, 2024

The Hamas onslaught of October 7 has been described by many as a “shock” for Israel. In terms of its violence, indeed it was a shock, but considering the misery, subjugation, and deprivation in Gaza, next to one of the world’s most prosperous and advanced countries, and growing international apathy toward the Palestinian question, a local outburst was only to be expected. Recently, Professor John Mearsheimer, a prominent critic of US foreign policy, called the situation in Gaza, “apartheid”.[i] And no wonder that the case against Israel was brought to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) by South Africa whose President Cyril Ramaphosa said that as a people who once tasted the bitter fruits of dispossession, discrimination, racism, and state-sponsored violence, they are clear that they will stand on the right side of history.

Okumaya devam et →

Growing Concerns Over Israel’s Rafah Offensive

Bir Cevap Yazın

May 20, 2022

Until yesterday, international attention was focused on the pending Israeli offensive on Rafah and the domestic political challenges facing Prime Minister Netanyahu. On Sunday, however,  Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi along with Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian and other officials died in a helicopter crash on their way back home from Azerbaijan. How this tragedy would impact the extremely complicated Middle East picture remains to be seen.

Okumaya devam et →

“Yumuşama” in Türkiye

Bir Cevap Yazın

May 13, 2024

During the past two weeks, the word “yumuşama” was widely used to describe “political change” in Türkiye. Though I know what some matching words are in English, I nonetheless looked up in the dictionary for alternatives. Among those were “moderation”, “softening”, “mellowing”, “relentment”, and “détente”. Being a retired diplomat, I was tempted at first to go inadvertently for “détente”. Inadvertently because the “policy of détente” refers to the time in the 1960s-1970s when the two superpowers, the USSR and the US eased tension and tried to cooperate to avoid conflict. It was a process.

Okumaya devam et →

What After the Rafah Offensive?

Bir Cevap Yazın

May 6, 2024

The UAE was the first Arab country to sign the Abraham Accords in 2020 normalizing relations with Israel. Later Bahrain, Sudan, and Morocco followed suit. Washington then started encouraging Saudi Arabia to join the group. In July 2022,  Riyadh announced that it would open its airspace to all airlines, paving the way for more overflights to and from Israel. The normalization of Israel-Saudi Arabia relations appeared close. What led these countries to seek better relations with Israel was their desire to benefit from its advanced technological achievements in multiple fields and broaden the front against Iran and its Axis of Resistance. After all, Islamic solidarity is a myth, and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation is a non-entity. Nonetheless, while signing the Accords they did not fail to pay lip service to the Palestinian cause. In reality, the question of Palestine was swept under the carpet for dynastic/national interest.

Okumaya devam et →

The Incremental Cost of the Wars in Ukraine and Gaza

Bir Cevap Yazın

April 30, 2024

The world remains focused on the wars in Ukraine and Gaza and the Iran-Israel confrontation. The former defines relations between Russia and the West and unfortunately, there is no path yet for a negotiated solution. The latter two are more of a challenge for the US, with Russia and China watching on the sidelines. How the Gaza conflict would evolve is likely to impact Washington’s standing in the world. In brief, these are not great times for global powers to stand up together against other global threats such as ISIS, a radical group that has proved its outreach on numerous occasions.

Okumaya devam et →

The Question of the Endgame in Ukraine

Bir Cevap Yazın

April 22, 2024

On February 26, 2024, President Macron, after hosting a meeting of 25 European leaders in Paris, said that there was “no consensus” on committing ground troops to the conflict in Ukraine but added, “Nothing should be excluded. We will do whatever it takes to ensure that Russia cannot win this war.” In early March, during a visit to the Czech Republic, Mr. Macron urged Ukraine’s allies not to be “cowards” in supporting its fight against the Russian invasion. However, Germany, the UK, Spain, Poland, and Czechia immediately ruled out any suggestion that they might commit ground troops to Ukraine. So did Washington.

Okumaya devam et →

Controlled Escalation in the Middle East

Bir Cevap Yazın

April 15, 2024

Since the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel, I have held the view that Iran will continue to support its Middle East proxies but not to the brink of war with Israel. I still do.

Although Washington and its Western partners remained silent on the attack and ignored its international law dimension, Israel’s bombing of Iran’s diplomatic compound in Damascus on April 1 marked an unprecedented escalation by Israel against Iran. Tehran’s response was to fire more than 300 drones and missiles on Israel. Of these, 99%  were intercepted overnight by Israel’s Iron Dome air defense system. The US, UK, and France also helped to intercept the massive barrage of drones Iran fired. Thus, only several missiles reached Israeli territory, causing minor damage to an air base. There were no casualties.

Okumaya devam et →

A New Dawn for Türkiye

Bir Cevap Yazın

April 3, 2024

I concluded a recent post with the following:

“At this time, the mood in the country is one of dejection… The principal battleground in the upcoming municipal elections would be Ankara, Istanbul, and Izmir, Türkiye’s three major cities. But across the country, this will be much more than a municipal election. It will be a general election, thus a vote of confidence for the AKP’s 22-year rule… We Turks need to be aware of the extremely high foreign and security policy cost of our democratic decline and sterile domestic policies.” [i]

Okumaya devam et →

Fighting Russia with Russian Money

Bir Cevap Yazın

March 24, 2024

Article 2 (4) of the Charter of the United Nations reads, “All Members shall refrain in their international relations from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state, or in any other manner inconsistent with the Purposes of the United Nations.”

Was Russia’s invasion of Ukraine a violation of the Charter? Yes. Unfortunately, however, the Charter, a supreme international convention, has been violated multiple times in the past through invasions and military interventions not sanctioned by the UN, and coups carried out in numerous countries during the Cold War.

Okumaya devam et →