Quote:
Originally Posted by Vronsky
Did he mention the Kurdish issue aswell?
This seems to be another major problem in Turkey's foreign relations.
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Yes, the Kurdish issue has been brought up a number of times. The dialogue foundation we met with today is planning a session in the Kurdish section of the country next year. The people we have been meeting with are very concerned about the problem but nobody seems to be in favor of a separate Kurdish nation.
I'm beginning to get dialogued/toleranced/humanized out. Met with 5 different Gulen groups today. There's only so much introducing and polite smiling a person can put up with. The major redeeming feature of the day was watching the first half of the football match between Turkey and Switzerland with a Turkish family in their home. They are committed to dialogue but there is a clear limit, which is reached once their soccer team starts playing. Then it's either watch the game with us or leave. I liked that attitude.
Also experienced my first insult when one of the leaders of a Gulen movement relief agency assumed all the trip participants were Christians and stated that all that really matters is that everyone is a monotheist, because monotheists are clearly morally superior to atheists. I just smiled politely as the trip hosts who know me, tried to smooth things over.