The issue of Kurdish secessionist violence and demand for separate homeland comprising the Kurds living in Iraq, Iran and Turkey continues to be spiky border problem between Turkey and Iraq even though both are on the same side in the present power balance of the world. Rising confrontation between the Kurdish rebels with the Turkish military on the wake of growing influence and political power of Kurds in Iraq as a valuable ally of the US, is resulting in cross border shelling of Iraqi territories.
Among the Kurd population of the region, Turkey has the highest. Their bloody conflict with the Turkish military dates back to the days of Ottoman Empire of 14th century. Led by Kurdistan Workers Party, or PKK since 1984, the Kurds are fighting for a separate independent nation amalgamating the Kurd inhabited territories in Turkey, Iraq and Iran. Violently suppressed by the Saddam led Iraq and the military of Turkey, their movement was tottering to its heel till Americans discovered in them a valuable ally to oust the Saddam Hussein government.
Now, the Kurds constitute an important part of the Maliki administration in Baghdad and their leader Jalal Talabani is the incumbent president of Iraq. They are given the virtual control of northern Iraq including the oil cities of Mosul and Kirkuk. Free from the Iraqi opposition and with more resources at their disposal, the Kurds in Iraq are accused by Turkey of giving sanctuary and assistance to their guerillas brethren fighting against Turkish forces. On its part Iraq is time and again complaining of extension of military offensive by Turkey beyond its borders.
On Wednesday Iraq blamed Turkish artillery and warplanes of attacking its areas. But Turkey rejecting any diplomatic move for talks threatened to push its ground offensive against Kurds to their suspected safe heavens in Iraq. It even justified its shelling of Kurd areas as a retaliation for their attack on its military convoys. Stepping up pressure on Iraq, Turkey has amassed about one and a half lakh forces on the border.
Any offensive by Turkey inside Iraq is sure to kill the fragile political stability. The US will be in more awkward position, as it needs both Turkey and the Kurds to save it from the Iraq misadventure and carry on the oil resources out of northern Iraq. On other hand strong Kurdish pose on the other side of border is sure to fuel and encourage secessionist movement in Turkey. The solution lies more in diplomacy and negotiations than infighting between Iraq and Turkey.
