KEY IRAQ ALLY TURKEY ANGERED BY HOUSE MOVE
By William H. McMichael – Staff writer

Navy Times, VA
Oct 12 2007

A valued ally in the U.S. war on terrorism could be on the verge of
turning its back on that effort over what the Bush administration
says is an ill-timed House resolution condemning the 1915-1917 mass
killings of 1.5 million Armenians by Ottoman Turks as "genocide."

And Turkey may be taking its own war on terror across the Iraqi border,
where Kurdish rebels who hope to create an independent socialist
state in the greater region are said to be hiding. The Associated
Press reported today that Turkish Prime Minister Recep Erdogan has
suggested that his parliament could hold a vote next week to allow
cross-border military operations.

AP reported Wednesday that Turkish warplanes and helicopters were
already striking positions along Turkey’s southern border with Iraq
in an attempt to rout the rebels of the Kurdistan Workers Party,
which the U.S. and others have labeled a terrorist organization.

The New York Times reported today that a recent uptick in violence
blamed on the rebels has prompted the action. More than 20 years of
Turkish conflict with the separatist group has produced some 30,000
total casualties, according to the U.S. State Department.

"The violence that has been undertaken by the PKK is an enormous
challenge," Army Gen. David Petraeus, the top U.S. commander in
Iraq, told AP Thursday. "It’s really a strategic issue. So we are
again very understanding of the concern [the Turks] have over these
terrorists who are up in the very, very high mountains that straddle
the border there."

Despite the massive U.S. presence in Iraq, it has no forces of any
significance in the country’s most northern reaches, controlled by
Kurdish militia forces allied with the U.S.

Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman said Thursday he was unaware of any
increase in U.S. force presence in the Kurdish-controlled north.

Whitman said the U.S. wants to get Turkey and Iraq to work on a
"long-term solution to what has been a problem for some time. And the
long-term solution is not … military action along the border." He
said the best way forward would be a "political and diplomatic
agreement on a way forward."

Turkish anger over the continued rebel presence and the resolution
places the U.S. in an extremely awkward position. Turkey, a NATO
ally, plays a key role in the U.S. war in Iraq. According to Defense
Secretary Robert Gates, 70 percent of American air cargo bound for
Iraq passes through Turkey, as well as 30 percent of the U.S. fuel.

"We are concerned about that," Petraeus said. "A lot our supplies
come through Turkey. … To maintain that commercial exchange is
hugely important through the border crossing at Habur Gate. And we
hope that will continue."

In addition to basing rights at Turkey’s Incirlik Air Base, Turkey
has commanded two security force rotations in Afghanistan and is a
partner in the Joint Strike Fighter project, according to Gates.

Sixteen U.S. Navy ships also made port calls in Turkey last year.

Turkey has not yet said whether or how the resolution could affect
its support of the U.S. war. But AP reported that Turkish President
Abdullah Gul warned of "serious troubles" if the measure was adopted
by the full House. U.S. officials underlined such sentiments.

"The Turks have been quite clear in saying that they will think very
carefully about some of the measures that they have to take if this
resolution passes," Gates told reporters in London today. "I think it’s
worth noting that the French parliament passed a similar resolution
and there were a number of steps taken by the Turkish government to
punish, if you will, the French government."

State Department spokesman Tom Casey added today, "Turkish officials
have made clear their very strong concerns about this and have
raised questions about potential consequences in the event that this
resolution passes."

Turkey’s U.S. ambassador was ordered back home Thursday for discussions
about the measure, and cited a private Turkish TV network report
that Turkey’s top naval officer cancelled a planned trip to the U.S.,
AP reported.

On Wednesday, the House Foreign Relations Committee passed a
non-binding resolution condemning the 1915-1917 killings as genocide –
something long and widely acknowledged by historians but vehemently
denied by Turkey, which says the killings were not government-sponsored
and which claims that hundreds of thousands of Turks also died in
fighting during the era.

Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., whose district has large numbers of
Armenian Americans, has long backed the measure, which is co-sponsored
by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif. It also has the support of
two Democratic presidential contenders, Sens. Hillary Clinton of New
York and Barack Obama of Illinois.

U.S. administration officials acknowledge the tragedy but said the
resolution needlessly sparks outrage over an issue of high emotional
significance to a strong ally.

"I think we all recognize there were mass murders 95 years ago, 1915,"
Gates said. "The problem that we have is that this is clearly a very
sensitive subject for one of our closest allies, and an ally that is
incredibly important to the United States in terms of our operations
in Iraq."

Pelosi acknowledged the "very strong relationship" the U.S. has with
Turkey and told reporters today that "this isn’t about … the Erdogan
government. This is about the Ottoman Empire."

As to why the issue was being pressed now, she replied, "There’s never
a good time. And all of us in the Democratic leadership have supported
our making – reiterating the Americans’ acknowledgement of a genocide."

Gates said the timing was poor.

"I think we all have to take into account the cultures and history
of individual countries," he said. "And all I can say is that a
resolution that looks back almost 100 years to an event that took place
under a predecessor government – the Ottomans – and that has enormous
present-day implications for American soldiers and Marines and sailors
and airmen in Iraq is something we need to take very seriously."

Casey agreed. "We don’t believe that passage of such a resolution is
helpful either to the cause of Turkish-Armenian reconciliation or to
U.S. national security interests. … The determination of whether
these events constitute genocide is something that we believe should
be a matter for historical inquiry, not for political debate."

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