How far can goodwill get you? If it is supported by facts and grounded in actions, perhaps as far as you want it to. If not, remain alert. Take for instance, the trouble caused for Turkey by the “zero problems with neighbors” policy of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu. This duo had become so confident in their mutual self-righteousness that they constantly slammed their predecessor governments for supposedly turning their backs on the Middle East and instead partnering with the West and Israel, as if this preference constituted racism toward Arabs and Muslims.

Hearing about modern Turkey’s history from Erdogan representatives, one wonders whether they approve of anything in Turkey’s past. The fact is that previous Turkish governments did, of course, have relations with the Arab states, including Syria, even when its regime was harboring Abdullah Ocalan, leader of the Kurdistan Workers Party and Turkey’s most wanted man for more than a decade. Cherry-picking and manipulating facts for political gain plays well in Turkey, but the fact is that the old Turkey, while certainly not without its faults, had a more balanced and objective approach to dealings in the Middle East because past governments recognized that Ankara alone could not fix the region’s acute and age-old problems. Thus, while maintaining its own identity, Turkey also strengthened its position with allies in the West.

Since when has knowing the best option for oneself been a mistake? To the contrary, moving away from one’s priorities and central concerns almost always comes with a cost. For example, the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) tried to convince Washington that it could drive a wedge between Syria and Iran. This was revealed in a confidential cable from the US Embassy in Ankara published by Wikileaks. Dated Feb. 25, 2010, the document appears to shed light on the reason for Erdogan’s close relationship with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad around that time. According to the cable, Feridun Sinirlioglu, an undersecretary at the Turkish Foreign Ministry, “contended Turkey’s diplomatic efforts are beginning to pull Syria out of Iran’s orbit.” As is evident today, Erdogan’s government failed not only in this effort, but also to prevent the Assad regime from turning on its own people.

Now, the AKP lends its full support to the Syrian opposition, but what the results will be is anyone’s guess. While one can debate the share of the AKP’s Syria policy that is to blame for the current bloodshed — had Erdogan not been so supportive of Assad early on, could western pressure have produced desired results? — one should not underestimate Erdogan’s role in all things Syria. The prime minister has said on numerous occasions, “Syria is our domestic affairs.”