Turkey studying U.S. counterterrorism strategy model
The Turkish government a comprehensive study for a new counterterrorism strategy, using the U.S. model for counterterrorism coordination as a possible base
What is that they say about imitation being the highest form of flattery? Here is a case in point. Turkish interior minister Beşir Atalay has launched a comprehensive study for a new counterterrorism strategy, using the U.S. model for counterterrorism coordination as a possible base. The U.S. Department of State’s coordinator for counterterrorism, Ambassador Dell Dailey, is in Turkey today to meet with Atalay, forming the first step of future counterterrorism cooperation within Turkey.
Sedat Güneç writes in Today’s Zaman that Atalay briefed the parliamentary Planning and Budget Commission on the new coordination body that will be set up within the Interior Ministry. “We should not establish yet another body too hastily,” he said. Atalay noted that the coordination unit will only concentrate on collecting and assessing information. “The unit we are planning to establish will be different from what has been done up to now. It will ensure a multidimensional perspective and conduct high-quality study, analysis and assessment. It should have flexible employment opportunities where knowledgeable experts with an awareness of terrorism can work,” he said.
Dailey will also have talks with Interior Undersecretary Osman Güneş and Police Department Chief Oğuz Kağan Köksal. Interior Ministry officials say that in these talks, the ways the United States ensures coordination in its counterterrorism efforts will be discussed. Dailey’s ideas are expected to be utilized in Turkish counterterrorism efforts.
Dailey had previously indicated that Turkish law did not cause difficulties in the international fight against terrorism but that stronger laws would facilitate better international counterterrorism efforts. Referring to the cooperation between Turkey and the United States concerning the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), he said: “We have unique intelligence-sharing with the Turkish government. As far as I know, we have had no such level of intelligence-sharing with any other country.”
