The reports today are that Turkish aircraft have bombed ISIS targets in Syria and Kurdish targets in Iraq. Do the Turks know what they are doing? It certainly seems so.
Let's go back with a bit of background. The Kurds are the largest ethnic group in the Middle East without a country of their own. They are principally located in four countries: Iran, Iraq, Syria and Turkey. Estimates are that between 20 and 25% of the population of Turkey is Kurdish. For many decades, there were Kurds who agitated for a state of their own. This led to some serious battles with the Turkish armed forces. Then, two years ago, the Kurds agreed to a peace deal with the Turks and violence ended. That should have been the end of battles between the Kurdish forces and the Turks.
Sadly, the Turks have become upset by the success that the Kurds have been having recently in fights against ISIS. There is a wide swath of northern Syria that is now controlled by the Kurdish forces. The Kurdish militia known as the peshmerga has taken control of well over half of the Syrian side of the border between Turkey and Syria. As the Kurds have pushed out the ISIS fighters from this region, it has made the Turks nervous. The Turkish leaders in Ankara believe that if a Kurdish state is established in northern Syria and northeastern Iraq, it will make the many millions of Kurds in Turkey itself restive and wanting to join their brothers in the new Kurdistan.
The Turks know that they could not simply attack the Kurds in Syria and Iraq without being cast as the allies of ISIS, so Turkey came up with a novel sort of solution. Turkey is now attacking both ISIS and the Kurds. In addition, in order to prevent the USA from stopping the attacks on the Kurds, Turkey is allowing America to use the Incirlik air base for strikes by US warplanes against ISIS. Obviously, if we pressure the Turks to stop attacks on the Kurds, then the Turks will again close their airspace to American planes.
The problem here is that the Kurds are long time American allies. During the Iraq War, the Kurds were the only Iraqi ethnic group that was clearly pro-American. Since the rise of ISIS, the Kurds have been the only ground force that has effectively fought against the deranged Islamic terrorists. The Kurds have fought the battle with us as allies. We cannot properly stand back while Turkey now attacks the peshmerga.
Surely, with Obama in charge of American diplomacy the USA will not take any action to rein in Turkey. America has it within its power to pressure the Turks to stop the attacks on the Kurds. If Obama follows the usual recipe for negotiation, however, he will first ignore the problem for months or years. Then he will act as if America is powerless to stop the new conflict instigated by the Turks.
America's problem is that the rest of the world will be watching us abandon a long time ally if we let the Turks continue to bomb the Kurds. Trust in America is already at a long time low. Having our allies watch Obama ignore the peril of the Kurds will only further lower our standing in the world.
What is the point of being a superpower if you never use that position to help yourself and your allies?
Let's go back with a bit of background. The Kurds are the largest ethnic group in the Middle East without a country of their own. They are principally located in four countries: Iran, Iraq, Syria and Turkey. Estimates are that between 20 and 25% of the population of Turkey is Kurdish. For many decades, there were Kurds who agitated for a state of their own. This led to some serious battles with the Turkish armed forces. Then, two years ago, the Kurds agreed to a peace deal with the Turks and violence ended. That should have been the end of battles between the Kurdish forces and the Turks.
Sadly, the Turks have become upset by the success that the Kurds have been having recently in fights against ISIS. There is a wide swath of northern Syria that is now controlled by the Kurdish forces. The Kurdish militia known as the peshmerga has taken control of well over half of the Syrian side of the border between Turkey and Syria. As the Kurds have pushed out the ISIS fighters from this region, it has made the Turks nervous. The Turkish leaders in Ankara believe that if a Kurdish state is established in northern Syria and northeastern Iraq, it will make the many millions of Kurds in Turkey itself restive and wanting to join their brothers in the new Kurdistan.
The Turks know that they could not simply attack the Kurds in Syria and Iraq without being cast as the allies of ISIS, so Turkey came up with a novel sort of solution. Turkey is now attacking both ISIS and the Kurds. In addition, in order to prevent the USA from stopping the attacks on the Kurds, Turkey is allowing America to use the Incirlik air base for strikes by US warplanes against ISIS. Obviously, if we pressure the Turks to stop attacks on the Kurds, then the Turks will again close their airspace to American planes.
The problem here is that the Kurds are long time American allies. During the Iraq War, the Kurds were the only Iraqi ethnic group that was clearly pro-American. Since the rise of ISIS, the Kurds have been the only ground force that has effectively fought against the deranged Islamic terrorists. The Kurds have fought the battle with us as allies. We cannot properly stand back while Turkey now attacks the peshmerga.
Surely, with Obama in charge of American diplomacy the USA will not take any action to rein in Turkey. America has it within its power to pressure the Turks to stop the attacks on the Kurds. If Obama follows the usual recipe for negotiation, however, he will first ignore the problem for months or years. Then he will act as if America is powerless to stop the new conflict instigated by the Turks.
America's problem is that the rest of the world will be watching us abandon a long time ally if we let the Turks continue to bomb the Kurds. Trust in America is already at a long time low. Having our allies watch Obama ignore the peril of the Kurds will only further lower our standing in the world.
What is the point of being a superpower if you never use that position to help yourself and your allies?
No comments:
Post a Comment