ISTANBUL - Hürriyet Daily News
Speaking at the Atlantic Council Energy and Economic Summit, former U.S. National Security Adviser Zbigniew Brzezinski said Turkey was on the edge of one of the most combustible parts of the world, and that an explosion such as military action in Iran
or wider violence in Syria would be catastrophic for world stability.
“Turkey is a key pivotal power. Its success as a European-type democracy is vital for Europe’s security,” he said.
In order to illustrate what he said was Turkey's importance, Brzezinski described two scenarios. “Imagine what the region would be like if Iran
became like Turkey, an impressively modernizing democracy. The region would become much more stable. Conversely, in a far more unlikely scenario, imagine what the region would be like if Turkey - because of religious or ethnic violence - became like Iran. It would be like transmission belt of violence to Europe,” he said.