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Generational Dynamics Web Log for 17-Oct-2014
17-Oct-14 World View -- In humiliation, Turkey loses Security Council seat over Syria policy

Web Log - October, 2014

17-Oct-14 World View -- In humiliation, Turkey loses Security Council seat over Syria policy

Venezuela scores anti-U.S. coup by winning Security Council seat

This morning's key headlines from GenerationalDynamics.com

In humiliation, Turkey loses Security Council seat over Syria policy
Venezuela scores anti-U.S. coup by winning Security Council seat
Pakistan's Taliban leaders declare allegiance to ISIS

In humiliation, Turkey loses Security Council seat over Syria policy

Recep Tayyip Erdogan

Recep Tayyip Erdogan

In a major humiliation to Turkey, the U.N. General Assembly on Thursday selected Spain instead of Turkey to hold a non-permanent Security Council seat in 2015. Turkey's president Recep Tayyip Erdogan had been lobbying hard for several months to win approval for the seat. Last month, Erdogan sucked up to several emerging market countries by promising to open up the five permanent member seats to other countries:

"The world is bigger than five. The fate of a country should not be in the hands of the US, France, Russia, China or the UK.
"A rotating system which would allow 193 member countries to be represented at the Council should be formed. There should be no notion of permanent membership; every country should have the chance to be represented."

There was even a posh party on Wednesday, the night before the vote.

But apparently all the sucking up did no good. The non-permanent seats are divided by groups or regions, and Turkey is in the "Western European and Others Group," and within that group, Turkey was competing with Spain and New Zealand for two seats. New Zealand won approval for one of the seats, and it was widely expected that Turkey would get the other seat. So it was a surprise to everyone when Turkey got only 60 votes in the General Assembly, and Spain won the seat with 132 votes in the secret ballot.

Turkey was apparently caught by surprise because of an intense lobbying effort by some of his former allies in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). Egypt and Saudi Arabia led the anti-Turkey effort because of Erdogan's support for Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood, which Egypt and Saudi Arabia consider to be a terrorist organization.

But the main force behind the anti-Turkey vote was Turkey's Syria policy. Leaders in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) are fuming at Turkey's unwillingness to fully back the military coalition against the Islamic State / of Iraq and Syria (IS or ISIS or ISIL). One European diplomat was quoted as saying,

"I thought they [Turkey] would lose votes, but the scale of their loss is surprising to me, very much so. It seems that Turkey was killed by the GCC [Gulf Cooperation Council]."

Turkey's Syria policy -- and its frequent calls to unseat Syria's president Bashar al-Assad -- pulled additional votes away from Turkey, including those of Syria and Iran. And Greece, Turkey's traditional enemy since ancient times, is also said to have lobbied against Turkey.

Since the voting was conducted by a secret ballot, it's not known whether the United States voted for or against Turkey. Business Insider and Newsweek and Middle East Eye

Venezuela scores anti-U.S. coup by winning Security Council seat

Venezuela was unopposed in its regional group, and received 181 votes in the 193-member General Assembly, more than enough to get a non-permanent Security Council seat in 2015, despite ten abstentions. Venezuela's President Nicolás Maduro said:

"This is the victory of Hugo Chávez Frias. Chavez keeps winning battles in the world ... It's a day in which the world has supported our fatherland."

Venezuela is expected to back allies Iran, Syria and Russia, and to take other anti-American positions. Since Venezuela, Syria, Iran and Russia are all such paragons of human rights, I'm sure we can expect a much more moral U.N. Security Council next year. Foreign Policy and World Bulletin (Turkey)

Pakistan's Taliban leaders declare allegiance to ISIS

As we reported two weeks ago, the leaders of the Pakistani Taliban (Tehrik-e-Taliban - TTP) have decided to switch sides and support the Islamic State / of Iraq and Syria (IS or ISIS or ISIL) instead the al-Qaeda linked Jabhat al-Nusra (Nusra Front) in Syria. ( "6-Oct-14 World View -- ISIS influence spreads in Asia, as Pakistan Taliban pledges support")

On Monday, the TTP leaders went beyond support for ISIS by declaring full allegiance to ISIS, repudiating their previous pledges of allegiance to al-Qaeda. According to Shahidullah Shahid, now a former TTP leader:

"I declare allegiance to the Caliph of Muslims, Amirul Momineen Abu Bakar al Baghdadi al Qarshi al Hussaini. I will listen and follow his every instruction whatever the situation may have been. This allegiance is neither from the TTP or its chief, Mullah Fazlullah. This is only from me and five leaders."

This statement hastens the disintegration of both the TTP and al-Qaeda, and signals the increasing strength of ISIS. Dawn (Pakistan) and Tribune (Pakistan)

(Comments: For reader comments, questions and discussion, see the 17-Oct-14 World View -- In humiliation, Turkey loses Security Council seat over Syria policy thread of the Generational Dynamics forum. Comments may be posted anonymously.) (17-Oct-2014) Permanent Link
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Generational Dynamics Web Log for 17-Oct-2014 17-Oct-14 World View -- In humiliation, Turkey loses Security Council seat over Syria policy

In humiliation, Turkey loses Security Council seat over Syria policy

Venezuela scores anti-U.S. coup by winning Security Council seat

Pakistan's Taliban leaders declare allegiance to ISIS

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Generational Dynamics Web Log for 17-Oct-2014
17-Oct-14 World View -- In humiliation, Turkey loses Security Council seat over Syria policy