About us | Advertising | Contact | Get Home Delivery | Archive
Mar 22, 2010 Homepage
News
Business
Interviews
Columnists
Op-Ed
Arts & Culture
Expat Zone
Features
Travel
Leisure
Life
Cartoons
Women
Health Briefs
Weird But True
Sports
Turkish Press Review
Today's think tanks
Turkey in Foreign Press

Columnists
EKREM DUMANLI e.dumanli@todayszaman.com Columnists

Turkish-Russian friendship grows in the embrace of change


Sometimes I look at events through the eyes of a classical science-fiction script. For example, if a person who lived 30 years ago were frozen and later were brought back to life, that person would surely not be able to believe what he would see today.

Today's interactive toolbox
Bookmark and Share
Video Photo Audio
Send to print Send to my friend
Post your comments
Read comments

For example, what is left concerning the Cold War era today? Massive changes, which historically would have taken centuries to happen, are now occurring in five to 10 years. The winds of change are affecting individuals, families, nations and governments, and they will continue to do so. Of course, the largest reason behind this large change is the media. While the media may cause large problems with a small piece of news, it can also work to solve large problems.

The relationship between Russia and Turkey is very different than it was 30 years ago. The people of the two neighboring countries now know each other better. Furthermore, economic relations between the two countries are in a much better state. And the political leaders of both countries present themselves as being in a better relationship with the other side to the global public. Turkish President Abdullah Gül's Moscow visit was received well in both Russia and Turkey. The friendly embraces caught on camera between Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and host Vladimir Putin left a deep and peaceful image in the minds of not just Russians and Turks but the world.

Now Putin is preparing to visit Turkey on Aug. 6. The architects of Turkey's foreign policy are rushing to host Putin. The Turkish people are happy with the latest developments. Businessmen on both sides are in favor of continuing bilateral visits. Efforts being exerted in the domains of culture, education and tourism are valuable enough to be considered good global examples.

The Zaman newspaper had prepared a special supplementary edition, along with the Russian daily Izvestia, during President Gül's Russia visit. I had personally witnessed the positive role this edition, delivered along with Izvestia, played in Russian-Turkish relations. Now the Zaman daily is preparing to publish a similar supplement. I have no suspicions of the effect this supplement, prepared with the help of my esteemed friend, the editor-in-chief of Izvestia, Vladimir Mamontov, will have. I am sure that 30 years from now, the next generation will appreciate the efforts taken today for peace and will similarly cherish the cultural efforts.

05 August 2009, Wednesday
EKREM DUMANLI
Comments on this article

Metin Aydın , Aug 05 2009 15:00, Wednesday
Well done!

Click to read the details of comments
   
Articles of Today
The ‘Armenian problem,’ intellectuals and politicians in Turkey
ŞAHİN ALPAY
Process (mis) management
YAVUZ BAYDAR
It’s good to know you’re in good hands
CHARLOTTE MCPHERSON
Can the AK Party change the Constitution?
İHSAN DAĞI
How to go for growth in Turkey
ASIM ERDİLEK
From zero problems to zero progress
ÖMER TAŞPINAR
Fraudulent activity regarding deeds -- Bodrum and other cities (1)
BERK ÇEKTİR
Reasons behind Erdoğan’s controversial statement
FATMA DİŞLİ ZIBAK

Other Articles of the Columnist

  Turkish-Russian friendship grows in the embrace of change
  What sort of ‘personal relation’ is this?
  Shameless or brazen?
  HSYK, enough already!
  They won’t even allow a coup in Honduras
  Coup generals, go to Honduras!
  Haste
  What if the action plan were implemented?
  Caught red-handed
  Are you still stuck with triviality?
  Mrs. Judge, please apologize!
  Judiciary’s suicide
  Operation to save Ergenekon
  Is it LAW or LOVE?
  You didn’t ask, but let me answer
  Individuals, religious communities and the state
  A prototype man or a prototype society?
  Başbuğ’s speech in numbers
  If you don’t want to see 47 percent again
  A map of risks government and opposition may face
Columnists
ABDULHAMİT BİLİCİ
ABDULLAH BOZKURT
ALİ BULAÇ
ALİ H. ASLAN
AMANDA PAUL
ANDREW FINKEL
ASIM ERDİLEK
AYŞE KARABAT
BEJAN MATUR
BERİL DEDEOĞLU
BERK ÇEKTİR
BÜLENT KENEŞ
BÜLENT KORUCU
CHARLOTTE MCPHERSON
DOĞU ERGİL
EKREM DUMANLI
EMRE USLU
ETYEN MAHÇUPYAN
FATMA DİŞLİ ZIBAK
FİKRET ERTAN
GÜRKAN ZENGİN
HASAN KANBOLAT
HÜSEYİN GÜLERCE
İBRAHİM KALIN
İBRAHİM ÖZTÜRK
İHSAN DAĞI
İHSAN YILMAZ
KATHY HAMILTON
KERİM BALCI
KLAUS JURGENS
LALE KEMAL
MEHMET KAMIŞ
MICHAEL KUSER
MUHAMMED ÇETİN
MÜMTAZER TÜRKÖNE
NICOLE POPE
ÖMER TAŞPINAR
ORHAN KEMAL CENGİZ
PAT YALE
ŞAHİN ALPAY
SELÇUK GÜLTAŞLI
SUAT KINIKLIOĞLU
YAVUZ BAYDAR