Didim Today

The real motivation behind United States Vice President Joe Biden’s visit to Turkey was not to discuss the level of cooperation against the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK). It is true that Biden did speak in detail with Turkish President Abdullah Gül and Parliamentary Speaker Cemil Çiçek about levels of cooperation surrounding the issue with Iraqi authorities; it seems Biden told political leaders both in Baghdad and Arbil there should be no obstacles sourcing from them on U.S. assistance to Turkey against the PKK. Neither the PKK, Syria nor Iranian-Israeli tension was the inspiration behind Biden’s visit.

The main motivation was something more strategic: It was the three day Global Entrepreneurship Summit (GES) being held in Istanbul. Biden made the opening remarks of the Global Entrepreneurship Summit that is the follow-up of the "Entrepreneurship Summit" hosted by the U.S. in Washington in April. The objective of the first summit was to deepen the ties between business leaders, foundations, and entrepreneurs in the United States and Muslim communities around the world.

In this context, 275 Muslim entrepreneurs from 59 countries ranging from Morocco to Indonesia, from Uganda to Kazakhstan, and from France to India participated in the summit. The United States considers this second summit being held in Istanbul important, hoping that it will promote a merchant class that can help deliver economic and political change in the Arab world.

The idea of GES goes back to 2009 when Professor Ekmeleddin İhsanoğlu, the secretary-general of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), wrote a letter to Obama underling the growing reaction in the Islamic world, with great root causes in growing economic inequalities as well as political and social ones. Some two months later he received an invitation from Obama for his June 2009 Cairo speech. In his speech at Cairo University, Obama mentioned the importance of economic development hand in hand with political and social development. The Partners for a New Beginning (PNB) project was proposed in reference to that speech.

National chapters in the U.S., Turkey, Pakistan, Egypt and Indonesia were established to encourage entrepreneurship in the Muslim world, not only in order to create new jobs, but to help the building of a new pluralistic society in parallel to that. PNB was supposed to be the acting body of the GES principles. The first GES was held in Washington and was hosted by Obama in April/May 2010, followed by the first PNB Steering Committee meeting in September. This summit really comes at a critical moment in the Middle East and North Africa.

We've seen that millions of people have been calling out for not only political freedom but also economic opportunity. The importance attached to the change in the Arab World also increases the significance of Turkey, not only by hosting the Entrepreneurship Summit but also by being a model to the transforming Arab world. Turkey is an important example to transforming Arab countries and that is why it is important for the U.S. Before the Global Entrepreneurship Summit, on December 2, Biden met President Abdullah Gül and Prime Minister Tayyip Erdoğan, and contrary to popular belief the Syrian issue did not occupy the agenda completely. The emphasis on the role of Turkey in the Arab world gave the impression that the basis of the talks will be the turmoil in Syria. However, surprisingly, the first issue on the agenda of Biden’s visit Counsellor Tony Blinken declared was the “struggle against the PKK”.

The US Vice President addressed a group of businesspeople at the second Global Entrepreneurship Summit in Istanbul, praising Turkey’s economic achievements in the last decade, such as tripling the size of the economy, record breaking exports, and increasing per capita income. Turkey is one of the key economies of the world, and is in the position to realize its potential, Biden added. Speaking of Turkey’s goal to enter the top 10 economies of the world by 2023, the centennial of the Republic.

Turkey’s much touted entrepreneurial spirit, combined with the benefits of a high performing economy, is set to place the country among the world’s top economies. “The next Steve Jobs may well be a Turk,” according to US Vice President Joe Biden. Biden referred to Apple’s founder Steve Jobs, giving a striking example of Turkey’s innovation potential: “I was not surprised to hear our Ambassador to Ankara saying that the next Steve Jobs may be from Turkey.

He might even be among us here. Turkey has a serious potential in talent and entrepreneurship,” Biden told the audience at the forum’s opening speech. A free political climate is essential to economic innovation, and countries that try to censor the Internet are pursuing a "dead end," U.S. Vice President Joe Biden told a group of young entrepreneurs gathered Saturday in Istanbul.

The international forum, which drew hundreds of attendees, followed up on a meeting in Washington last year aimed at deepening ties between the United States and Muslim communities around the world. Biden said a political system based on freedom of speech and religion also is the "truest shield" against sectarian strife that has afflicted the Middle East, as well as Western Europe in past centuries. Democratic revolutions like the ones in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya, and the ones still unfolding in Syria and Yemen, are imbued, literally imbued, with entrepreneurial spirit, a spirit that requires risk and initiative, steadfast determination, and a unifying idea.

America has a history of innovation, Biden said, noting the success of companies such as Apple and Google, as well as breakthroughs in medical technology such as mobile-phone apps that can help diagnose malaria. He praised Turkey, noting that the economy has tripled in size over the past decade. Turkey's deputy prime minister, Ali Babacan, said Turkey was an example for the region of how Islam and democracy can coexist peacefully. Head of the Turkish chapter Rifat Hisarcıklıoğlu, who is also the chairman of the Turkish Union of Chambers and Commodities Exchanges (TOBB) told some 140 PNB delegates from nine countries that inequalities in current income levels were the greatest threat to stability and must be fought with.

Toni Verstandig of the Aspen Institute’s Middle East Programs summed the purpose up in a very articulate way, saying strengthening the private sector in the Islamic geography would help democratic life to flourish as well. Perhaps that is why Biden lists two basic qualities of Turkey to set an example for the rest of the Islamic world: its secular state in a mostly Muslim society and its open economy.

Burak Altin, Aydin Real Estate, for further information please visit www.aydinestate.com or e-mail This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it