Kirkuk : The mad dash for 10 Billion Barrels of OIL

Asia Times ^

[BlackJack]

The Jerusalem of the Kurds-As Johnny would say- "I did not know that".

[nunya bidness]

The Jerusalem of the Kurds-As Johnny would say- "I did not know that".

Nothing from nothing, I did.

[a_Turk]

Look out baby, 'coz here I come..







.., and forget about that Jerusalem BS...

[a_Turk]

Turkish armor pouring to the border from all over the land. These particular pictures are from Istanbul.

Now's the time to find out about that old joke: If {country x} attacked Turkey from the back, would Greece help?

[OrthodoxPresbyterian]

But Turkey also has its eyes set on Kirkuk, likewise laying historical claim to the city. According to Ankara, which last month announced it was revisiting old maps, Kirkuk belongs to Turkey because it was part of the Ottoman Empire, but in the aftermath of World War I, as the French and the British divided up the region, the city was stripped from the Turks. The Turkish military warns that any attempt by Iraqi Kurds to seize control of Kirkuk - as they did briefly during a 1991 uprising - will spark a strong reaction. Estimates of Turkish troops already in northern Iraq range from 12,000 to 20,000 troops.

"Ankara announced last month that it was revisiting old maps."

Holy "Terribly-interesting-and-not-widely-Reported", BatMan.

• Great Britain is now firmly ensconced in its position as Athens to America's Rome.
• France and Germany prepare to merge their Citizenship. Napoleon and Hitler having respectively failed, I suppose that Carolus Magnus is back in style.
• After 600 years of "turning inward", China is turning outward once again. Apparently, it's not 1423 no more.
• And now the Sublime Porte has announced as official policy that they are, ahem, "revisiting old maps".

Hold on to your hat, Francis Fukuyama. This is beginning to look like a bumpy ride.

[a_Turk]

>>the Sublime Porte

is long dead..

The Brits snuck north 150 miles after the Mudros armstice, violating it.. No problem, that's life...

[BlackJack]

Yes...very bumpy.....and a lot of places, people and things seem to be blowing up lately.

The UK to US....Athens to Rome comparison, its good.

Vini Vidi Vici

[BlackJack]

A whole lotta bombin goin on....

This past weekend a bomb at a bank in Lagos Nigeria killed
about 40 people. The police reported it as a possible robbery
attempt. Its probably muslim terrorism.

The fighting in Ivory Coast involves fighting between the muslim north and the christian south. Muslim attacks are picking up.
A bomb just went off a few hours ago at police headquarters
in Jakarta,Indonesia.

Now the BBC is reporting a bombing at the Pakistani State Oil
headquarters in Karachi.

Is al Qaeda starting a new offensive?

[OrthodoxPresbyterian]

the Sublime Porte is long dead.. The Brits snuck north 150 miles after the Mudros armstice, violating it.. No problem, that's life...

Well, that is life...

On the 13th of November 1918, allied battleships and cruisers anchored in the Istanbul harbor.

But is it not a somewhat-famous Turk (a full-general by the age of 37) who said, addressing his adjutant...

"Don't you worry, young man. They shall go the way they came."

Dead... or merely long forgotten? Apparently Ankara is "revisiting old maps".

Well, I for one would be happy to let the Turks stick their feet in this snake-pit -- if you really want it. Could I perhaps convince you to fight the entire war on our behalf? To the victor goes the spoils, I won't complain. Wilson, Lloyd, and Clemenceau were fools to take it from you in the first place.

I'd much rather buy my gasoline from a (somewhat dependable) Ataturk-ized Istanbul -- running the whole shebang, if I could con you into accepting the deal, from the Cedars of Lebanon to the Persian Gulf -- than any of the tin-pot dictators and Shari'ah Sheikhs running the place now.

And, not to sound too cynical, if unruly Arab terrorists must be managed -- I'd rather the Turks spent their own blood on the ordeal, then for the Christian West to bother with the mess ourselves.

Not to sound too cynical.

---

That said, if Turkey has any designs of "correcting" Wilson's mistakes and re-asserting her Proper dominion in the region, then I stand by my observation -- it's gonna be a bumpy ride.

"May you live in... interesting... times."

[OrthodoxPresbyterian]

Yes...very bumpy.....and a lot of places, people and things seem to be blowing up lately.

The trouble is, the 20th century created a Global FUBAR -- as to USA involvement, I'll be "conservative" and admit that this is mostly the Democrats' fault and blame Wilson, FDR, and Johnson for most of the screw-ups. Coolidge snored and Eisenhower played golf -- and neither of them "accidentally" created a genocide or two.

Be that as it may, now everybody-with-a-grudge can't decide if they want it to be 1900AD or 1600AD or 800AD.

Put it all together, and "messy" ain't the word. (grin)

The UK to US....Athens to Rome comparison, its good.

It's not mine. I'm not certain of the citation, but I'm reasonably confident that I'm ripping off ole' Winston Churchill.

I'm not that personally bright. But I am smart enough to recognize someone else's trenchant aphorism. "Use your eyes -- Plagiarize". After all, spiritual pride is a sin... me, I'm humble enough to steal. (grin)

Vini Vidi Vici

Veni Vidi Vici. (But now I am just nit-picking your Latin. Sorry, it's late).

Do well, OP

[a_Turk]

>> Could I perhaps convince you to fight the entire war on our behalf?

Not a chance. Read my tag line.

>> I'd much rather buy my gasoline from a (somewhat dependable) Ataturk-ized Istanbul

A somewhat dependable store should be enough for a somewhat dependable customer..

>>And, not to sound too cynical, if unruly Arab terrorists must be managed -- I'd rather the Turks spent their own blood on the ordeal

Keep thinking.. You have't got it yet.

>>"correcting" Wilson's mistakes

Don't pin the mistakes on Wilson. It was young Churchill who violated the Wilson Principles.

>> "Don't you worry, young man. They shall go the way they came."

Some things never change.. But this time it's the USA - a different persona: not a dying empire. Even though she won't linger there for long either, I feel she's a lot more honorable than those scoundrels we had put ourselves in a position to deal with during WW1. No angel, mind you, but also no scoundrel.

[OrthodoxPresbyterian]

>> Could I perhaps convince you to fight the entire war on our behalf? ~~ Not a chance. Read my tag line.

Pity. There's something to be said for Proxy wars.

At least, "We buy the Oil, you keep the Profits, and you spend the Blood and Treasure to get there" sounds like a pretty good deal to me.

>> I'd much rather buy my gasoline from a (somewhat dependable) Ataturk-ized Istanbul ~~ A somewhat dependable store should be enough for a somewhat dependable customer.

Bon Mot.

>> "Don't you worry, young man. They shall go the way they came." Some things never change.. But this time it's the USA -- a different persona: not a dying empire. Even though she won't linger there for long either, I feel she's a lot more honorable than those scoundrels we had put ourselves in a position to deal with during WW1. No angel, mind you, but also no scoundrel.

"she won't linger there for long either" -- HAH!! Your prayer and mine, albeit to a different God (jimmy carter notwithstanding).

"she won't linger there for long either" -- Your prayer and mine.

So, about you running the Middle East for us, and cutting us a sweet deal on Iraqi crude... Aside from that nasty unpleasantry with the June assassination of the Archduke, the spring of 1914 wasn't really all that bad, for all concerned -- was it, really? Be a good sport....

You're sure you don't want to fight this one for us? You can have Baghdad, we just want the Oil contracts....

[a_Turk]

>>"We buy the Oil, you keep the Profits, and you spend the Blood and Treasure to get there" sounds like a pretty good deal to me.

Your suggestion sounds like too much work to me. Why not just let the Brits do it.

>>Your prayer and mine

No prayer, just prediction based on historical fact. IT'S THE ECONOMY, STUPID!!

>>So, about you running the Middle East for us

Nah, thanks though..

[OrthodoxPresbyterian]

A whole lotta bombin goin on.... This past weekend a bomb at a bank in Lagos Nigeria killed about 40 people. The police reported it as a possible robbery attempt. Its probably muslim terrorism. The fighting in Ivory Coast involves fighting between the muslim north and the christian south. Muslim attacks are picking up. A bomb just went off a few hours ago at police headquarters in Jakarta,Indonesia. Now the BBC is reporting a bombing at the Pakistani State Oil headquarters in Karachi. Is al Qaeda starting a new offensive?

"Is al Qaeda starting a new offensive?" If so, somebody with half a brain might be in charge. Assuming that Bin Laden and his lieutenants still have half a brain between them what with the daisy-cutters and all.

Nigeria is a mess and Indonesia may be the largest Islamic country, but they are too far out in the Pacific for their neighbors to tolerate an Islamic Revolution. Neither Australia nor Japan nor China is willing to accept such a development in Jakarta, although China's response might not make the USA too happy. Gambling on two-outta-three....

Meanwhile, pissing off Ariel Sharon by murdering Israeli school-children is great for "rallying the oppressed palestinian pipples", but if you're gonna go for gusto... Pakistan is on the knife-edge of revolution, and they already got the "Mohammed's Megatons" nukular thang going on.

Lagos and Jakarta do not interest me. Karachi does. Cut off the State's oil finances, then go in for the kill? Something to watch....

[OrthodoxPresbyterian]

>>"We buy the Oil, you keep the Profits, and you spend the Blood and Treasure to get there" sounds like a pretty good deal to me. ~~ Your suggestion sounds like too much work to me. Why not just let the Brits do it.

The Brits? Capital idea. While the Turks were barely able to keep a lid on the place for a measly four centuries, the Brits maintained polite good-will and perfect efficiency for an entire... four decades!! Whaddya think about that, smart guy?

Why, they did such a fine job the first time around, I thought we'd just let them rest on their laurels.

>>So, about you running the Middle East for us ~~ Nah, thanks though..

Well, fortunately (for me) these decisions are made well above our pay-grade.

Hopefully the USA won't be there for long... and hopefully, if Allah cares more about Turkish profits than Turkish blood, you will be.

Mindful that Turkey is the only dependable Islamic ally in the region, I desire nothing less for her than all the billions in Oil Profits that the Middle East can offer... and all the unmitigated joy that certainly entails.

A left-handed compliment on my part? Take it as you will (grin).

I don't have to forgive the Turks for turning the Hagia Sophia into a bloody mosque of all things; but I do regard her as the only Islamic Civilization which was not so nikulturny as to tear the place down. That's my story, and I'm stickin' to it.

As always, JMHO.

[weikel]

No it was definitely Wilson's fault. Churchill just implemented a lot of the crap Wilson and Lloyd George agreed upon at Versailles.

[a_Turk]

If one of the Wilson principles was to not draw borders through ethnic groups, then whaddaya call Churhill's insistence on keeping the Kurds split up?