Raising tensions between the Turks and Kurds
Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan raises tensions yet again,
This is pretty threatening rhetoric. The President of Kurdistan obliquely threatened violence in Turkey, and the Turkish PM threatened to "crush" the Iraqi Kurds.
"A northern Iraq which neighbours Turkey is gravely wrong in the way it is currently acting and this could result in a very heavy cost for them afterwards," Erdogan told reporters.
His warning came after Massud Barzani, the head of the autonomous Kurdish region in northern Iraq, reportedly threatened to interfere in Turkey's affairs if Ankara continued to oppose Kurdish claims on the oil-rich city of Kirkuk.
This is pretty threatening rhetoric. The President of Kurdistan obliquely threatened violence in Turkey, and the Turkish PM threatened to "crush" the Iraqi Kurds.
posted by mikevotes at
8:30 AM
4 Comments:
Forget Iran. Turkey-Kurdistan is where we'll see the next flash point. And the Bush admin will be shuffling in confusion with its pants around its ankles, making impotent but inflammatory demands and accusations.
We will drive Turkey into a more radical, sectarian (theocratic?) national identity and the centuries old experiment of a free, democratic Muslim nation will be over.
By
-epm, at 9:42 AM
I think the Turks would need a pretext for a serious attack on northern Iraq, and I wonder if the Kurds would do that.
Of Course, they could expect political cover and protection from the US if they did.
And, not an expert on Turkey, but I wonder if they would go Muslim. Certainly it would play a part, but I would guess them more likely to go militaristic nationalism. That's both more in their history and in the construction of their government.
In Turkey, it's the military generals that play the parallel role to the Supreme Council in Iran. It's generals who act as the guiding hand of the government.
I would think that religion would certainly be tied in like in any nationalist movement, but I would wonder whether that would be the dominant element.
Again, not an expert, thinking out loud.
Miek
By
mikevotes, at 10:20 AM
Well, my blogoshere rhetoric far exceeds my actual intellect. But...
What you say about the generals is true, but the sectarian forces have increasingly gained the ear of the Turkish every-man. Not to a tipping point, but still, their political power is at an historic high point.
The Kurdish "problem" is one that unites both the military nationalists, and the sectarian Islamists. It seems to me, a military confrontation between Turkey and Kurdistan would, shall we say, immensely complicate things in the region. Where does American allegiance lie? With the Turks, or with the Kurds?
I think such a confrontation with Kurdistan may well be the tipping point for the sectarian Islamists in gaining the hearts and minds of the Turkish population -- beyond the every-man and into the educated "westernized" classes. Remember, this comes on top of the spurning of the EU regarding membership as well as the whole kerfuffle with EU countries outlawing(?) publicly denying the Armenian genocide at the hands of the Turks. A very, very raw issue with the Turks, to say the least.
My question is: What will it take for Turkey, as a nation, to identify more with, say, Syria than with Europe? And what happens if Turkey becomes part of the "Muslim world." If the Muslim world loses its Arab face, how does that affect our western caricature of Muslims?
I have no answers. I'm just spouting off a bunch of questions running through my head. I just have this gut feeling that Turkey is the keystone between East and West and we (as a nation) should be paying more attention to it.
By
-epm, at 10:51 AM
I don't know who the US supports in a flareup. Recent history would suggest the US would look to protect the borders of Iraq and the Kuds, however, at the same time, they have no interest in the Kurds becoming a truly independent state which might be the endgame.
I will certainly accept your argument regarding Turkey and the potential for islamic influence.
I should say that my comments are colored by several Turks I have known at various points over the years in the US, and those Turks here for education or business are probably the most "worldly" and and educated and are probably not representative of the country as a whole.
And, in a broade strategic sense, Turkey is key, not only for it's position as a cultural pivot, but also as the geographic bridge between three continents.
Thats the reason the Us has courted Turkey so hard over the years, including pushing its EU membership.
If it somehow did turn significantly against the US (it already has slipped some) it would be a huge foreign policy disaster.
Mike
By
mikevotes, at 11:28 AM
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