THE PKK AND KIRKUK

Kurdish Globe
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Aug 21 2008
Iraq

Turkish soldiers take part in a military parade in the Turkish occupied
area of the divided capital Nicosia, Cyprus, Sunday, July 20, 2008. AFP

International world politics are in deep-crisis mode, with the
possibility of the advent of a new Cold War era, mainly between
Western bloc countries and Russia/China.

The regions of the Middle East, East Europe, and Caucasia are focal
points for international contention. The war in Iraq, the conflict
between Georgia and Russia, the row over Iran’s nuclear program,
and the missile defense system deal signed this week between the
U.S. and Poland despite Russia’s serious objections indicate the
dangerous path of world politics.

Kurdistan as a geostrategic region in the Middle East and its
approximate closeness to the Caucasus (through north Kurdistan/Turkey
Kurdistan) without doubt makes it a very strategic region, thus
attracting the attention of international powers.

The Kurdish nationalist movement in general has been caught unprepared
and disoriented in this sensitive period when the great powers are in a
deep struggle for restructuring world politics and the economy. South
Kurdistan’s political actors’ relevant organization and united
stance thankfully elevated the political status of southern Kurds
(Iraqi Kurds) to a recognizable position. The divided, disoriented,
and confused state of affairs of Kurdish political movements in other
parts, however, not only reduces the chance and opportunities for the
realization of Kurdish national rights, but at the same time presents
a serious menace on further political gains of southern Kurdistan
(Iraqi Kurdistan), particularly on the issue of Kirkuk. In this
confused state of affairs, the PKK is the major reason and it must
be dealt with swiftly.

The Ergenekon case in Turkey not only exposed the dark side of the
Turkish state’s illegal acts, but it also revealed the PKK’s relation
with Ergenekon. The Istanbul public prosecutor’s accusation about
Ergenekon throws serious doubt on the PKK’s real intentions and
its dirty relations with it. Ergenekon is not what most observers
claim-a gang supported by some high-ranking military officials. It is
a legacy of Teskilati Mahsusa, a clandestine organization set up by
the Committee of Union and Progress (CUP), which played a major role
in the Armenian Genocide in 1915 and the formation and development
of the Kemalist movement following World War I.

The PKK is a Trojan horse in Turkey, used initially to fragment the
Kurdish national movement during the 1980s and later to destabilize
Iraqi Kurdistan from the 1990s to the present. The incorporation of
Kirkuk into Kurdistan Region will be a historical turning point for
a century-long Kurdish national movement, and the reality is that,
among all others, it is Turkey that exerts all its pressure and
threats not to allow this to happen. The only serious weapon that
Turkey has to destabilize southern Kurdistan is the PKK card and it
plays it well. Military and political destabilization of Kurdistan
Region of Iraq and constant threat of a possible Turkish invasion is
a key stumbling block in the way of southern Kurds to press further
on Kirkuk.

It is crucial to notice that without a resolution to the PKK problem,
the incorporation of Kirkuk to Kurdistan Region will barely be
possible. Southern Kurdish political actors’ seriousness in the Kirkuk
issue must be reflected on the issue of the PKK. This card must be
taken out of the hands of Turkey without further delay.