[AP Photo]Donald Trump’s upcoming meeting with Recep Tayyip Erdogan at the White House confirms the shift in American policy toward Turkey that is largely a result of the personal relationship between the two leaders, especially the way the American president approaches authoritarian leaders of other countries.
In Trump’s purely transactional approach, the prospect of selling a huge number of commercial airplanes (Boeing) and military jets (F-16s and potentially F-35’s), is an additional powerful incentive.
It is a reality that Greek diplomacy is called upon to navigate through, highlighting both the country’s comparative advantages and its real, rather than theoretical, stabilizing role in the Balkans and Southeast Europe, as well as the value of its geographical location that offers opportunities to major American interests, primarily in the energy sector, both in terms of transporting American gas to European markets and in extracting energy sources within Greek territory.
The magnitudes on the commercial front may be smaller, but they are by no means negligible.
In addition, defense cooperation continues and is being strengthened.
In promoting its interests, that in most cases coincide with America’s, Athens is leveraging the political and economic influence of the Greek diaspora, which has yielded tangible results.
The promotion of Greece’s role and the handling of the complex regional scene were, after all, the reason for the Greek Deputy Foreign Minister’s presence in the American capital just a few days before Mr. Erdogan’s meetings with the Greek Prime Minister next Tuesday in New York, and with the American president two days later in Washington.
The US has every reason to nurture the strategic alliance with a reliable ally like Greece which plays a critical role in a very volatile region. To do so, it should not overlook its legitimate concerns.
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