Political relations between the United States and the Ottoman Empire began in the 19th century, primarily serving economic and cultural interests. The two countries signed a Treaty of Friendship and Commerce in 1830, outlining the framework of their bilateral relations. This treaty granted the United States most-favored nation status within the Ottoman Empire. The first article of the agreement stipulated that Ottoman Empire's merchants trading in the territories and ports of the United States, or from those ports to other countries, would pay the same taxes and fees as those paid by the most favored countries. The Turkish-American rapprochement since the founding of the Republic of Turkey on October 29, 1923, served as a stabilizing factor for the nascent Turkish state. The United States emerged as one of the poles of the new world that formed after World War II, and recognized the geopolitical significance of Turkey, the successor state to the Ottoman Empire. Consequently, the United States accorded Turkey full attention and support at the political, economic, and military levels during one of the most difficult periods in Turkey’s modern history.