Standoff between Ankara and the United States: yes to military operations against Kurds in Iraq
Ankara (AsiaNews) – The Turkish parliament has approved a motion put forward by Premier Erdogan’s government, authorising – “if necessary” – a large scale operation in northern Iraq to eliminate Kurdish PKK camps (Kurdistan Workers Party founded by Ocalan). The operation could last up to a year. Erdogan said that the vote does not mean that any military intervention is imminent, but the parliamentary decision is laden with hidden dangers that could have global repercussions.
It has come at a very delicate time in relations between the United States and Turkey, which have recently deteriorated.
The decision to step up the offensive against the PKK by crossing the Iraqi border comes in the wake of the killing of 13 Turkish soldiers on October 8th in the south of the country close to the Iraqi frontier. Certainly this is not the first time that Turkish soldiers have been killed during operation “anvil”: sconce April of this year – when the unilateral ceasefire with the PKK fell through – over twenty thousand soldiers have been tracking the Kurdish terrorists. But this time national resentment has been fed by the resolution passed by the US Congress’ Commission for Foreign Affairs on October 10th regarding events which took place in the Ottoman Empire during World War I and the “Armenian Genocide”.
Up until now the American ban had curbed any military intervention in Iraq; now the resolution on the genocide is the perfect weapon “against the United States”, to find a way out of the ancient Turkish frustration over the unresolved issue of Kurdish terrorism and the Armenian genocide which have persecuted the Turkish nation now for over ninety years.
Days before, General Yasar Buyukanit, military chief, had warned that the resolution being passed by the US House of Representatives, would “cause irreparable damage in US-Turkey relations”. This is exactly what is happening, without the minimum consideration of the negative effect this backlash will have in the long term for the Turkish nation, in losing this close ally.
Until now Erdogan had kept a reasonably neutral position in the face of military insistence, justifying his prudence with a generic “we must take into account all of the political, economic, diplomatic and military consequences”. Today all hesitations vanished. He declared without the minimum hesitation to the nation which is pushing for a strong answer to terrorism: “whatever the price may be we will pay it, we have lost our patience”. What’s more, in seconding Turkey’s rampant anti-Americanism, he said that the US ban will prove no obstacle, given that “they asked for no-one’s permission before invading Iraq”.
It is a veritable stand-off between Ankara and Washington (who does not want an armed conflict in the only calm area of the country), given that Ankara could limit access or even close down NATO bases in the south of the country at Incirlik, through which over 60% of all US traffic to Iraq passes.
Before the 22 July elections, public opinion had been the only reign on the government. Now this obstacle has been removed: intervention in Iraq is being demanded from all quarters, “to radically uproot terrorism which destroys peace and continually kills young and innocent Turkish lives, military and civilians”. Its victims are considered true martyrs for the Nation; national collections for their families have garnished over 45 million Turkish Lire (27 million Euros) in just a few days.
And yet not everybody is convinced that a military operation is the only decisive solution capable of defeating the PKK.
“The list of Turkish military interventions in Iraq is very long”, insist both Turkish and Western military analysts. “In particular during the ‘90’s” –they declare – on at least two separate occasions Ankara’s army crossed the Iraqi border with tens of thousands of men and a heavy military force. The support of some local Kurdish factions as well as the combined logistical support of the Americans was still not enough to defeat the PKK. And – they continue – when attacked the rebels take refuge in the mountains waiting for the storm to pass. Why should it be any different this time? Above all when you take into account that now the Turks cannot even count on support from the Kurds or the Americans”.
Moreover, Northern Iraq is not what it was 90 years ago: it is part of a legitimate state, with its own president of the republic and foreign minister. The president of the autonomous Iraqi Kurdistan, Massud Barzani, has declared that a Turkish invasion of the Qandil Mountains, where the PKK rebel bases are believed to be, would be considered an act of aggression against the independence of the entire region which is being called to decide its own future by popular vote in November. Within this lies the city of Kirkuk – referred to as the “Kurdish Jerusalem” for the mix of religions and ethnic minorities – which according Barzani will remain within Iraqi Kurdistan after the referendum, thus giving the Kurds the economic benefits of the massive oil reserves ( equal to over half of all Iraqi reserves). A tasty morsel which invites a lot of speculation and which risks becoming a new hotbed within the Middle East.
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19/01/2022 20:29
