Kurds fear new Turkish threats
Saturday, 17 October 2009, 01:06 EDT
www.niqash.org
Dizayee has called on al-Maliki to confront Turkey regarding the decision.
Iraq's Kurdistan Region Government (KRG) is growing concerned after the Turkish parliament passed a recent motion extending by one year the government's mandate to conduct cross-border military operations into Iraqi Kurdistan to pursue fighters from the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK).
According to Safeen Dizayee, head of international affairs for the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), the decision represents a direct threat to relations between the two sides.
"Any Turkish military incursion into Iraq's Kurdistan region is a violation of Iraqi sovereignty,» he said.
Dizayee who was the KDP representative in Ankara for 11 years, accused Turkey of conducting a two-faced policy: on one hand they talk about solving the Kurdish issue in Turkey, he said; on the other hand they want to use military means to suppress the Kurdish issue - a means that has proved unsuccessful for over 25 years.
Turkish Prime Minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, is expected to arrive in at Baghdad next Thursday when he will discuss the matter with his Iraqi counterpart Nouri al-Maliki.
Dizayee has called on al-Maliki to confront Turkey regarding the decision.
But according to the Kurdish MP, Dr. Mahmud Othman, the central government in Baghdad is part of problem rather than the solution, telling Niqash that there are a number of secret agreements between Baghdad and Ankara regarding security issues which impact on the Kurdistan region.
«Baghdad has never expressed any concern or stand against the Turkish bombardment and the military operations on the Kurdistan region's border,» Othman said.
But the issue is more than just political.
Any military tension between Turkey and the Kurdistan region threatens to lead to the closure of the border between Iraq and Turkey, which will in turn heavily impact economic ties between the two countries.
Many Turkish companies work in Iraq and the country is dependent on Turkish expertise for domestic reconstruction. According to Musa Muhammad Tofiq, an economist at Salahadin University, around 400 Turkish companies are now working in Iraq, 80 of them in Erbil city.
At the same time the two countries are involved in lucrative joint oil and gas projects.
The benefits flow both ways.
«There is an economic crisis in Turkey now, the jobless rate is increasing and tourism is going down; Turkey is heavily depending on Iraq to save its economy,» said Tofiq.
Ismet Sultan, a Turkish businessman working in Iraqi Kurdistan expressed his concern at the potential ramifications of military conflict between Turkey and the Kurdistan Region.
«Any military conflict means we have to leave and go back to Turkey, said Sultan, explain that this will also impact European companies that use the border as a crossing.
Turkish companies also buy much of their materials for the Iraqi market from European firms, meaning that a downturn in investment is likely to also provoke European economic losses.
For the Kurdish Region the potential implications are also sever.
The economy is flourishing today because people believe the region is stable but any Turkish military incursions would change that instantly, threatening the region's economic prosperity.
«Conflict with Turkey means the Kurdistan region won't have economic security,» said Tofiq.
Sultan believes these economic incentives will ultimately trump political ambitions.
"The economy comes first,» he declared.
According to Dizayee diplomatic relations between Turkey and the KRG are slowly improving, despite the recent step by the Turkish parliament, and he hopes that dialogue can be used to resolve the issue.
«I believe the subject of opening a Turkish consulate in Erbil will be discussed during the visit of Turkey`s Prime Minister to Iraq,» said Dizayee, saying that a diplomatic presence in the north of Iraq would contribute to better relations between the two sides.
Link
Saturday, 17 October 2009, 01:06 EDT
www.niqash.org
Dizayee has called on al-Maliki to confront Turkey regarding the decision.
Iraq's Kurdistan Region Government (KRG) is growing concerned after the Turkish parliament passed a recent motion extending by one year the government's mandate to conduct cross-border military operations into Iraqi Kurdistan to pursue fighters from the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK).
According to Safeen Dizayee, head of international affairs for the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), the decision represents a direct threat to relations between the two sides.
"Any Turkish military incursion into Iraq's Kurdistan region is a violation of Iraqi sovereignty,» he said.
Dizayee who was the KDP representative in Ankara for 11 years, accused Turkey of conducting a two-faced policy: on one hand they talk about solving the Kurdish issue in Turkey, he said; on the other hand they want to use military means to suppress the Kurdish issue - a means that has proved unsuccessful for over 25 years.
Turkish Prime Minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, is expected to arrive in at Baghdad next Thursday when he will discuss the matter with his Iraqi counterpart Nouri al-Maliki.
Dizayee has called on al-Maliki to confront Turkey regarding the decision.
But according to the Kurdish MP, Dr. Mahmud Othman, the central government in Baghdad is part of problem rather than the solution, telling Niqash that there are a number of secret agreements between Baghdad and Ankara regarding security issues which impact on the Kurdistan region.
«Baghdad has never expressed any concern or stand against the Turkish bombardment and the military operations on the Kurdistan region's border,» Othman said.
But the issue is more than just political.
Any military tension between Turkey and the Kurdistan region threatens to lead to the closure of the border between Iraq and Turkey, which will in turn heavily impact economic ties between the two countries.
Many Turkish companies work in Iraq and the country is dependent on Turkish expertise for domestic reconstruction. According to Musa Muhammad Tofiq, an economist at Salahadin University, around 400 Turkish companies are now working in Iraq, 80 of them in Erbil city.
At the same time the two countries are involved in lucrative joint oil and gas projects.
The benefits flow both ways.
«There is an economic crisis in Turkey now, the jobless rate is increasing and tourism is going down; Turkey is heavily depending on Iraq to save its economy,» said Tofiq.
Ismet Sultan, a Turkish businessman working in Iraqi Kurdistan expressed his concern at the potential ramifications of military conflict between Turkey and the Kurdistan Region.
«Any military conflict means we have to leave and go back to Turkey, said Sultan, explain that this will also impact European companies that use the border as a crossing.
Turkish companies also buy much of their materials for the Iraqi market from European firms, meaning that a downturn in investment is likely to also provoke European economic losses.
For the Kurdish Region the potential implications are also sever.
The economy is flourishing today because people believe the region is stable but any Turkish military incursions would change that instantly, threatening the region's economic prosperity.
«Conflict with Turkey means the Kurdistan region won't have economic security,» said Tofiq.
Sultan believes these economic incentives will ultimately trump political ambitions.
"The economy comes first,» he declared.
According to Dizayee diplomatic relations between Turkey and the KRG are slowly improving, despite the recent step by the Turkish parliament, and he hopes that dialogue can be used to resolve the issue.
«I believe the subject of opening a Turkish consulate in Erbil will be discussed during the visit of Turkey`s Prime Minister to Iraq,» said Dizayee, saying that a diplomatic presence in the north of Iraq would contribute to better relations between the two sides.
Link