The White House hopes Turkey raids in northern Iraq will be short
New York, February 28 2008. The Turkish army said in a statement on Monday February 25 it has killed 41 separatist Kurdish rebels, raising the reported death toll in its incursion in northern Iraq to 153 since Thursday February 21. The White House meanwhile hopes Turkey’s latest armed raids against Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) will be short and spare civilians. The Bush administration also said that Turkey coordinated with US forces in Iraq when launching its crackdown on the PKK. But statements from U.S. officials show how difficult it is for the White House to address a potential conflict involving two of its allies in the Middle East. On February 22, U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice expressed “absolute solidarity” with Turkey over the fight against the PKK which is classified by Washington as a terrorist organization. “We have also been very clear, though, that stability and progress for Iraq is in the interest of Turkey”, Mrs Rice added. “And so everyone should keep in mind that nothing should be done to destabilize what is a fragile but improving situation in Iraq”. “The U.S. policy toward the Kurds is definitely a mess”, Stephen Zunes, a professor of political science at the University of San Francisco said. “Whenever two of your allies are threatening war, it is a problem. (…) The other issue is that Washington is clandestinely arming the Party for a Free Life in Kurdistan (PEJAK), a group closely allied with the PKK”. The professor explained that the only difference between the two, is that PKK launches attacks in Turkey, while PEJAK fights in Iran. In 2007, Samuel Brannen, an expert with the Center for Strategic and International Studies, served as a staff member for the Independent Commission on the Security Forces of Iraq, chaired by General (Ret.) James L. Jones. In a phone interview, he said he sees “no evidence supporting the claims that the U.S is helping PEJAK rebels who might have purchased their arms on the black market”. Mr Brannen added the U.S. in northern Iraq is “contradictory” and said he expects U.S. president George Bush to intervene soon to stop the air strikes in order to prevent U.S. resentment in the region. A State Department spokeswoman repeated on Monday the White House would let Iraqis decide what they want for their country. “It is clear though that the Bush administration does not want Iraq to be breaking into 3 states, Stephen Zunes said. Ideally, they want a decentralized country with autonomous provinces”. The State Department has called repeatedly for a political solution in northern Iraq. “The Turkish government needs to sit down with its Iraqi counterpart”, Mr Brannen said. Abdullah Gul, the Turkish president, made the first step last week when he called the Iraqi president Jalal Talabani to invite him to Ankara. The expert also hoped retired General Joseph Ralston, the former U.S envoy in the region who resigned last fall, could be convinced to restart his mission. “General Ralston could help both parties find a solution”, Mr Brannen concluded. A French version of this story came out on February 26 2008 in 24heures and Tribune de Genève in Switzerland. CommentsYou must be logged in to post a comment. |
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