Iraqi Turcoman minority urges Turkey to keep out

alertnet.org ^ | 22 Feb 2003 16:06 | Sebastian Alison

[Destro]

22 Feb 2003 16:06

Iraqi Turcoman minority urges Turkey to keep out

By Sebastian Alison

ARBIL, Iraq, Feb 22 (Reuters) - Iraq's Turcoman ethnic minority, whose protection Turkey often cites as a key reason for sending troops into northern Iraq, urged Turkey on Saturday to keep out, saying such a move would be "baseless".

With a U.S.-led attack on Iraq to force out President Saddam Hussein an increasing possibility, Turkey has already sent some troops to the self-governed Kurdish territory in northern Iraq.

Turkey has a large Kurdish minority near the Iraqi border, and is keen to establish a buffer zone to prevent any calls for the establishment of a separate Kurdish state in post-Saddam northern Iraq from spilling over into its own territory.

It has routinely cited the need to protect ethnic Turcoman citizens, who form a minority in Iraqi Kurdistan and are closely related by language and culture to both Turks and the Turkmen of ex-Soviet Turkmenistan, as a justification for military intervention.

Turkish Foreign Minister Yasar Yakis said on Friday that if war were to start, there should be more Turkish than U.S. troops in northern Iraq.

But a senior Turcoman representative in Iraq dismissed the idea on Saturday, saying no military incursion was needed.

"We don't think circumstances are conducive to intervention, as the Turcoman people have no fears living here, and have enjoyed democracy since 1991," Jawdat Najar, a senior representative of northern Iraq's Turcoman National Association, told a briefing.

"We the Turcoman people are not in need of asking an army from a neighbouring country...this would be baseless."

The three Iraqi provinces which make up Iraqi Kurdistan under the protection of a so-called "no fly zone" patrolled by the U.S. and British aircraft since 1991, enjoy far greater political pluralism and press freedom than many parts of the region.

"Those asking for Turkish military intervention probably have their own agenda, but the Turcoman people are not suffering from any persecution or any pressure here, so that kind of intervention would not be needed," Najar said.

Romeo Hakari, General Secretary of the Christian Assyrian Bet-Nahrain Democratic Party, agreed.

"We are not only against intervention from the Turkish side, but from any regional countries. We would stand against this," he told the same briefing.

Najar added that he believed the Iraqi people would resist military rule in any form in an Iraq post President Saddam Hussein.

"The Iraqi people would not be willing to accept a military ruler from the United States -- how then would they be willing to accept a military leader from a neighbouring country?" he asked.

"I do not think Turkey would make such a mistake. Turkey has a legitimate right to have fears over its national security, but not to intervene in Iraq. We the Iraqi people are all against it."

[Destro]

Kurds, Turcomen, Assyrian Christians all in agreement it seems on this point.

[George W. Bush]

Weird. Any comments from FR's Turks? Are the Turcomen being intimidated or do they really oppose Turkey coming to northern Iraq after all?

Everything about this entire Turkish deal seems odd.

[George W. Bush]

Bump for your comments on this if any.

[Turk2]

After seeing that Turcoman leaders have been arrested by Kurds several times over the past few weeks, anything is possible.

[Destro]

From StrategyPage.comKURDISH WAR: Turks versus Turks to Help the Kurds

September 12, 2002; There is also a Turkish (Turkmen, closely related to the Turks in Turkey) in northern Iraq. The 100,000 or so Turkmen live in the Kurdish zone in the north and have joined with the the Kurds in opposing any Turkish intervention in northern Iraq.

[George W. Bush]

There's some history and politics among these people that isn't readily apparent. But it would appear that some of the justification for entering Iraq to protect their cousins, the Turcomen, aren't very credible. The Turcomen don't seem to be complaining about the idea that the Kurds or Iraqis are going to pump the Kirkuk/Mosul oil either.

[Destro]

Turk is a wide classification. The Turkomen are to the "Turks" what the Dutch are to the Germans. If you really want to think about it the English people are really Germans.

Just because they speak a related language (Turkic) does not mean that they are the same people.

[a_Turk]

Certainly there are interest groups who fear a secure and prosperous Republic of Turkey. Those would be the same interest groups who supported terrorism there.

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/849463/posts?page=4#4

Some inside information: Destro's Greek family had to leave Turkey because of enmities that resulted from WW1. Any article Destro posts is guaranteed to be anti-Turk, unless he falls, bumbps his head, passes out, and wakes a new man.

[George W. Bush]

Certainly there are interest groups who fear a secure and prosperous Republic of Turkey.

You have to wonder if there's a lot of politicking going on. Maybe some Turcomen cutting deals for profit at the expense of others, jockeying for position.

At present, with Big Brother in the neighborhood, I suspect everyone is on a little better behavior than usual. That's the way it usually works. And local factions are probably all jockeying for money and power, between groups and within those groups. I guess it's not hard to understand why they do it. Lots of oil to control for years to come.

[a_Turk]

Sorry to dash all their hopes. There'll be geographic states, not ethnic, and no enthnic armies. Thus the cries of the Iraki Opposition in Exile.

[rmlew]

Just because they speak a related language (Turkic) does not mean that they are the same people.

Actually, Turcomen are ethnic Turks who speak Arabic. Uzbeks and Anatolian Turks are distantly related. Turcomen and The Tukish/Ottoman/Seljuk Turks are decended from the same group, the Ghuzz-Seljuk and general Turkmeni migrations following 1040.
The Azeris of Iran and Azerbaijan are part of the same group.

As for the general article, are we to take the statement of a few groups in either Iraqi controled territory or Kurdish controlled territory at face value?

[Destro]

Well, under whose face value do you want to take it under then? Certainly the Turks of Turkey do not seem to speak for the these "Turks".

[George W. Bush]

There'll be geographic states, not ethnic, and no enthnic armies.

I agree. If we can establish a non-aggressive state in Iraq, it will make everyone more satisfied. Maybe even the Kurds.

At some point, I expect France/Germany may try to make trouble by advocating an independent Kurdistan. They might think it is in their financial interests to do so. Fortunately, they don't have enough military to make it fly. But they can make trouble.

[rmlew]

I don't take anyone's self-motivated claims at face value.