Posted on 06/23/2014 1:37:49 PM PDT by SeekAndFind
". . . Ankara has entered into energy deals with the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), something which has infuriated the central Iraqi government in Baghdad but which has helped the Kurds further build a foundation for their independence [yes true that] Ankara has been so alarmed by the growing Kurdish autonomy [in Syria and tolerated by Syria, I believe] that it reportedly has provided support for [ISIS] in their fight against the Kurdish militia that controls the region [of Syria],which is affiliated with the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK)." [my emphasis]
more..
". . . the takeover by ISIS in recent days of Mosul and other cities . . . Ankara will likely not only have to deepen its relationship with the KRG . . . but also alter its approach to the Kurds in Syria [I ask: but demand that the Kurds in Syria reject the PKK?]"
more..
"Explains Lehigh University professor and Turkey expert Henri Barkey in an analysis piece on Al-Monitor website: The crisis may force the Turks to rethink some of their policies in Syria. To date, Ankara’s friendship with the Kurds stopped in Iraq; Erdogan and his government have taken an uncompromising position against Syrian Kurds led by the Democratic Union Party of Kurdistan (PYD), an offshoot of the Turkish Kurdish insurgent group the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK). The PYD has emerged as the strongest Kurdish group in Syria and has put together an impressive fighting force to defend its territory from both ISIS and the regime. The idea of another autonomous Kurdish region on its borders after the KRG has been anathema to Ankara. Paradoxically, the PYD’s armed elements are some of the only ones that have scored blows against the jihadists. In the face of the ISIS sweep, the PYD and the KRG, which have also had antagonistic relations, appear to be cooperating on defensive measures against ISIS. Turkey may have to reconsider its boycott of the Syrian Kurds to enlarge the anti-ISIS coalition." [my emphasis]
Even a Turkish Islmic like Erdogan knows which side his bread is buttered with the Kurds in Iraq. Thanks.
hmm, my IPAD keyboard must be Turkish, lol.. I meant: ‘Even a Turkish Islamic like Erdogan knows which side of his bread is buttered with the Kurds in Iraq. Thanks.’
I would expect that they will bide their time and play their cards carefully. So far, they seem to be doing a masterful job after being dealt a poor hand - I don’t expect a rash provocation from the Kurds against Turkey. On the contrary, they seem to have largely succeeded in co-opting the Turks to their cause lately.
They have become stakeholders in domestic Turkish politics. Candidates in Turkey can (must) pander to the large Kurdish minority in Turkey (~15%). Photo ops with smiling Kurdish leaders and endorsements have value domestically.
The Kurdistan Government leaders have greater influence now among the Kurdish communites outside Iraq, because they are now richer, more powerful militarily, and draped in glory politically for their achievements toward nationhood. Their opinions on strategy are respected. They can help substantially with any problems one might have with your own Kurdish minority. They have raised their image as part of the solution to Turkey’s security problem with Kurds, rather than as a potential problem. Their (increasingly) good behavior on this front has engendered some credibility among Turks.
And last but not least, they have (apparently) bribed the living daylights out of the Erdogan regime with their oil pipeline deal through Turkey. It was a big scandal recently in Turkey when Gulenists exposed the massive kickbacks being received by family members of the Erdogan regime.
Also, the Kurds has long been courting/cultivating the United States as an ally. Not one American was killed in the Kurdistan region during the long occupation in Iraq. When I visited Erbil, they literally succeeded in bringing tears to my eyes with their expressions of brotherhood and thanks for liberating them from Saddam. I expect that they would be very careful not to burn that bridge by taking on NATO.
“Iraq” was invented by the British. I think separation is the way to go. We should have divided it into 3 countries.
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