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Gates: Turkey gives US no timeframe on
Iraqi Kurdistan operation
28.2.2008
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February 28, 2008
ANKARA, Turkey -- Turkey has given no clear
timeframe for ending its military operations against
Turkey's Kurdish PKK rebels in Kurdistan region in
'northern Iraq', U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates
said on Thursday after talks with Turkish officials.
Gates also reiterated Washington's call for the
operation, now in its seventh day, to be as short
and carefully targeted as possible.
"A specific timetable did not come up in my meeting
with the defence minister, but I have three more
meetings (today in Ankara)," Gates told reporters.
"It should be clear that military action alone will
not end this terrorist threat,"www.ekurd.net
he added, saying Ankara
must also take political and economic steps to
isolate the PKK guerrillas and help support Turkey's
large ethnic Kurdish minority. |
U.S. Secretary of Defense, Robert Gates |
Turkey's Defence
Minister Vecdi Gonul repeated Ankara's assurances
that Turkish troops would withdraw from Iraq once
they had accomplished their mission against the
rebels of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK).
"Turkish soldiers entered Iraqi territory only to
fight PKK targets... We have no intention against
civilians, no intention to occupy any areas," Gonul
said, speaking in English.
Asked when the troops would leave, he said: "(When)
the mission is completed. We have no intention to
stay."
Over
10,000 troops were reported to have penetrated
20 kilometers into the autonomous
Kurdistan region in 'northern Iraq' on February 21.
Turkey rejects direct talks with Iraqi Kurdistan
government, Officially, Turkey does not recognise
the regional government of Kurdistan led by
president Massoud Barzani.
Turkey has never, and still does not, recognize the
Iraqi Kurdistan region government (KRG) and refuses to
meet with its representatives in any official
capacity. That reflects Ankara's fear that any
international respect shown to the autonomous Iraqi
Kurdistan region would only embolden Turkey's own
large Kurdish minority to seek similar home-rule
status.
The core of Turkey's "Kurdish problem" is not the
PKK. It is Turkey's denial of basic political and
cultural rights to its Kurds.
Analysts believe the Turkish raids inside Iraqi
Kurdistan region had a secondary purpose of
discouraging a referendum on Kirkuk city. Ankara
fears that if the oil-rich Kirkuk joins Kurdistan,
the Kurds will have the economic foundation they
need for an independent state.
Turks are also fearful of the autonomy the northern
Iraqi Kurdistan region enjoys with its own flag,
institutions and even oil exploitation contracts
with overseas companies.
Iraqi Kurdistan politician says, Turkey is using
Turkey's Kurdish separatist PKK rebel group (Kurdish
freedom fighters) as an
excuse to invade Kurdistan region 'Iraq' to prevent
the establishment of Kurdistan state in the Kurdish
autonomous region in 'northern Iraq', Turkey fears
this could fan separatism among its own large
Kurdish population in southeast Turkey.
Over 39,000 Turkish soldiers and Kurdish PKK
guerrillas have been killed since 1984 when the PKK
took up arms for self-rule in the country's mainly
Kurdish southeast of Turkey. A large Turkey's
Kurdish community openly sympathise with the Kurdish
PKK rebels.
The PKK demanded Turkey's recognition of the Kurds'
identity in its constitution and of their language
as a native language along with Turkish in the
country's Kurdish areas, the party also demanded
an end to ethnic discrimination in Turkish laws and
constitution against Kurds, ranting them full
political freedoms.
Information for this report was provided Reuters |
AFP | Agencies
AP | 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, a
large Turkey's Kurdish community 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
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