Erdogan rebuffs US, insists Turkey isn't Iran ally

Press quote (Bloomberg)
Katinka Barysch
17 June 2010

Divergence from the US on Iran is "not an anti-American move, it's a pro-Turkey move that happens to benefit Iran," said Katinka Barysch, an analyst at the Centre for European Reform in London. Erdogan's move away from lockstep with the West increases his credibility in the region, which means "we can use Turkey's access to countries like Syria and perhaps even to Hamas for mediation," Barysch said.