Here is Al Jazeera, of all news sources, covering the fence-mending meeting of President Karzai of Afghanistan and President Musharaf of Pakistan that just held under the auspices of Turkey.
It was an important meeting, and perhaps not the last the heads of Pakistan and Afghanistan may hold in Turkey. It is significant on two scores. First, it shows a fascinating diplomatic effort to resolve a major obstacle to cooperation against terrorism in the region. And second, it shows Turkey as the honest broker, an interesting role for that country to take openly.
Turkey right now is immersed in its own election for President--under the possible threat of military intervention--and yet its government manages to support attempts to gain closer cooperation between Karzai and Musharaf, two frequently feuding leaders whose countries each contain huge terrorist populations. Pakistan, indeed, could become a flash point for further regional destabilization if the US (thanks to the Democratic Congress) opts out of Iraq. Afghanistan, meanwhile, already is facing such a fierce revival of the Taliban forces that this supposedly "good war" is beginning to lose
support from countries fighting there, such as Canada.
That Turkey has a part to play is usually neglected in coverage of the war on terrorists. That Al Jazeera would run this story, and run it straight--shows that there is at least one editor with the network who has a perspicacious nose for news behind the news.