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American--Turkish cooperation.

Article Excerpt
[The following is an excerpt of remarks provided by the Secretary of State to the American-Turkish Council Luncheon, Washington, DC, April 15, 2008.]

Turkey is a vital and strategic partner of the United States, and so it's fitting that this year's conference theme is: "Regional Allies and Global Partners." I did indeed visit Turkey, first as Secretary of State, in my very first trip in 2005 because the centrality of this relationship is very clear to me and has been for a number of years. But a year later, my then counterpart, Foreign Minister Gul, now President Gul, and I decided to create a strategic vision statement for U.S.-Turkish relations because we wanted to show that the relationship between Turkey and the United States was evolving and was moving toward the challenges of the 21st century--that it, of course, was a relationship that had important elements as military allies and NATO [North Atlantic Treaty Organization] allies. But it was much more than that. It was a relationship of growing economic ties. It was a relationship of growing diplomatic responsibility for the challenges in the world. And perhaps, most importantly, it was a growing relationship between our peoples. I am always very much mindful that, while the relationship between governments is important, the relationship between peoples is what really brings a firm foundation to a relationship between nations.

Now, as NATO allies over many decades, our cooperation today is closer and more necessary than ever--in fighting terrorism, in promoting freedom and democracy, and in ensuring that all people within the region can live safely and securely without fear. Our commitment to these goals also leads us...