|
Turkey tensions lift oil prices in London
and New York
15.10.2007 |
|
|
|
October
15, 2007
LONDON, UK,-- World oil prices surged to
record peaks on Monday, hitting 84.35 dollars per
barrel in New York, as traders feared unrest in
crude producer Iraq could further tighten global
energy supplies.
London Brent oil, meanwhile, soared to a fresh
all-time high of 81.26 dollars per barrel.
Prices are surging amid heightened tensions between
Turkey and Kurdish PKK rebels in the border
mountains in Iraqi Kurdistan region, traders said.
Turkish troops shelled an Iraqi Kurdistan border
village overnight, continuing its bombardment of
areas where Turkish Kurd rebels have set up bases, a
frontier guard said on Monday.
The shelling came ahead of a meeting of the Turkish
government in Ankara to prepare a motion seeking
parliamentary approval for a military incursion into
northern Iraq, where an estimated 3,500 rebels of
the separatist Kurdistan Workers' Party are based.
Oil market traders "are still worried about possible
tension with Turkey and Iraq on the northern
borders," explained Robert Montefusco, an analyst at
Sucden brokerage in London.
"It's being discussed in Turkish parliament at the
moment over whether it is legal for them to go and
invade.
He added: "There's no lost production at the moment,
so it's only perceived that we could lose some
production if any of the pipelines are affected in
that region from Iraq."
"That is the main concern at the moment.
Monday's historic peaks also came as solid US
economic data signalled solid crude oil demand in a
tightly-supplied market.
Traders are fearful of a peak in demand for heating
fuel during the forthcoming northern hemisphere
winter.
AFP
**
Kurds are not recognized as an official minority in
Turkey and are denied rights granted to other
minority groups. Under EU pressure, Turkey recently
granted Kurds limited rights for broadcasts and
education in the Kurdish language, but critics say
the measures do not go far enough.
The use of the term "Kurdistan" is vigorously
rejected due to its alleged political implications
by the Republic of Turkey, which does not recognize
the existence of a "Turkish Kurdistan" Southeast
Turkey.
Others estimate over 40 million Kurds live in
Big Kurdistan (Iraq, Turkey, Syria, Iran, Armenia),
which covers an area as big as France, about half of
all Kurds which estimate to 20 million live in
Turkey.
Turkey is home to over 25 million ethnic Kurds, some
of whom openly sympathise with the Kurdish PKK for a
Kurdish homeland in the country's mainly Kurdish
southeast of Turkey.
Before August 2002, the Turkish government placed
severe restrictions on the use of Kurdish language,
prohibiting the language in education and broadcast
media.
The Kurdish alphabet is still not recognized
in Turkey, and use of the Kurdish letters X, W, Q
which do not exist in the Turkish
alphabet has led to judicial persecution in 2000 and
2003
The Kurdish flag flown officially in Iraqi Kurdistan
but unofficially flown by Kurds in Armenia. The flag
is banned in Iran, Syria, and Turkey where flying it
is a criminal offence"
Southeastern Turkey:
North Kurdistan ( Kurdistan-Turkey)
wikipedia
Top |
Kurd Net
does not take credit for and is not responsible for the content of news
information on this page
|
® 