FOR decades Turkey has offered itself to a slightly sceptical world as a vital bridge between East and West. Its geography alone - Istanbul is the only city in the world which straddles two continents - has made this self-image inevitable.
For centuries traders from Anatolia, the Asian part of Turkey, transported eastern exotica - silks, spices, carpets and jewellery - across the Bosphorus and Sea of Marmara to their fellow Turks in Thrace, the European sector. The European Turks in turn extended this trade westwards to the rest of Europe. In return, western ideas, as well as technology, flooded eastwards.
For many of the Turkic speaking peoples of south-east Asia, Turkey is still the shop-window of the West. Busloads of consumers travel every week to Turkey to catch a glimpse of the fare on offer in the bazaars and markets of Anatolia.
Apart from its relative proximity, Asians feel more comfortable in Turkey than elsewhere in Europe: for one thing they - literally - speak the same language. (Towards the end of a recent flight to Istanbul I was amazed to discover that the two men chatting easily beside me were not fellow Turks but a Turk and an Azerbaijani, each speaking his own language.)
The Turkic linguistic "empire of the east" extends far beyond the Caspian Sea, as far east, in fact, as China, and embraces many underdeveloped but oil-rich states that have achieved or have struggled for independence since the collapse of the Soviet Union.
But language is only one factor that allies these people: another is their Muslim identity and all the cultural ramifications that go with membership of the world Islamic community.
On Wednesday this week, Ankara signed a defence technology co-operation pact with Israel, assuring the Jewish state that its policies for rapprochement would not be affected by the government of pro-Islamic Prime Minister, Mr Necmettin Erbakan. It was the second defence agreement signed between Turkey and Israel this year. In February, they finalised a military training and co-operation accord which caused uproar in several Arab countries.
Mr Erbakan was - understandably, given his Islamic constituency - reluctant to sign this latest agreement after he came to power in late July. However, like many a prime minister before him, he was talked around by Turkey's military leaders a reminder of what might be termed the third coalition element in a country which has always relied heavily, since Ottoman empire times, on a strong standing army.
This week's accord with Israel stands in stark contrast to Mr Erbakan's first international overture: within days of achieving office he travelled to Tehran to seal a $20 million agreement for the importation of natural gas from Iran. He has also taken steps to improve relations with Syria and Iraq.
Then, to add insult to injury in western eyes, Mr Erbakan this week also pledged to restore close economic relations with Libya after a hiatus of several years.
All these moves have started alarm bells ringing in western capitals. The Iranian gas deal seemed at first glance to fly in the face of President Clinton's controversial embargo on financial investment in "terrorist-sponsoring states". However the Erbakan coalition has been at pains to portray it as a trade pact rather than an investment of the type included in the Clinton ban.
The new Turkish policy seems to be to temper firm actions with gentle words of reassurance. Similarly, Ankara has tried to play down the significance of the Israeli military pact.
"Today's deal is just a framework agreement which, in itself, doesn't have practical consequences," an Ankara diplomat told Agence France Presse. "However, by signing it, Turkey has soothed the worries of the Israelis who were concerned over the future of relations with Turkey under Erbakan's rule."
The diplomat continued: "There is also another message to the western world. At a time when Erbakan wants to boost ties with the Islamic countries, this signing shows that Ankara will keep its good relations with others."
But for how long can Ankara continue walking this tightrope? Iran and several Arab states, most notably Syria, have denounced the military co-operation deal with Israel which, among other things, allows Israeli pilots to have training flights in Turkish airspace. The plan for the modernisation of Turkey's ageing Phantom fighter aircraft by a leading Israeli defence company is estimated to be costing $650 million.
In view of the acute tension at present between Ankara and Athens, the Turkey-Israel deal may raise western as well as eastern eyebrows.
Mr Erbakan's Welfare Party has climbed to power through a combination of hard constituency work, concerned action for the poor and a clean record in a country weary of political corruption. By entering coalition it has shown its willingness to compromise. So, how far the party will push the secular Turkish state in its espousal of Islamic values is anyone's guess.
For the moment all that can be said is that the Islamists in power seem determined to consolidate their eastern links while being at pains to hold on to those Turkey has forged in recent times with the West.