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James Kapsis M.P.A. '06, a former Congressional staffer, recently authored the Current History article, "From Desert Storm to Metal Storm: How Iraq Has Spoiled US-Turkish Relations," outlining policy recommendations for improving relations between the two states.

The strained relations between the U.S. and Turkey, Kapsis argues, are having real effects on both of their strategic interests. According to the author, the current tension stems from a failure of strategic imagination that led both governments to mismanage their bilateral relationship in the run-up to the March 2003 invasion of Iraq and in its aftermath.

If the U.S. and Turkey do not take real steps to improve their relations, Kapsis writes, both of their interests in Iraq will suffer. The Turks need the Americans to help them defeat the PKK (Kurdish Worker's Party), a Kurdish separatist organization (designated a terrorist group by Turkey, the U.S., and E.U.) and ensure that whatever Kurdish entity emerges in northern Iraq is not a threat to Turkey's territorial integrity. For Washington, tension with Turkey further complicates its goals to maintain peace and stability in northern Iraq and to isolate the Syrian regime.

Ultimately, Kapsis concludes, if the U.S. and Turkey are going to repair their relationship, the U.S. must more strongly prioritize eliminating the Iraqi insurgency and training Iraqi troops. The U.S. and Turkey both have an interest in expelling the PKK from northern Iraq; however, while the PKK is Turkey's most pressing security priority, the Americans must place eliminating the Iraqi insurgency, training Iraqi troops, and brokering a constitutional compromise higher on their to-do list.

The complete Current History article is available (PDF Format), as well as a policy brief (PDF Format) summarizing the article and its key recommendations.