The Turkish raids on the PKK sites in Iraq and Syria do not resemble the direct conciliatory signals given by various parties within Türkiye to end the long and bloody dispute with the Kurds.
One cannot rush to consider the raids as a regression from what seemed like a new vision of Ankara to resolve the Kurdish issue in a peaceful manner. But the Turkish reaction to the terrorist operation in Ankara was an indication of the difficulty and complexities of the task, in a tense and extremely turbulent regional context.
Türkiye’s old problem with the Kurdish separatist movement had become more complicated after the war in Syria. It prepared the ground for the PKK and the rest of the separatists to gather in northeastern Syria and establish an entity there with American support which threatens Türkiye and its security, as well as the interests of the Syrian people. This is particularly after wings within these entities were drawn into cooperation with Iran, so that they would have that dual loyalty towards two sides which want to use the separatist card to pressure Ankara.
Türkiye has undoubtedly become aware of the major repercussions of the separatists in Syria gaining strength from American support and cooperation with Iran, particularly in neighbouring Iraq. It has sought to confront the dangers in a steady and regular manner. Türkiye realises that an Israeli invasion of Syrian territory, even if it was for the purpose of encircling Hezbollah’s power centre in the Lebanese Bekaa Valley, could lead to the Iranian militias, including Hezbollah elements deployed in Syria to attempt to strike the flanks of the Israeli forces, after they leave their current positions.
The Turkish government sought to avoid such risks through a peaceful initiative put forward last week by the leader of the Nationalist Movement, DevletBahceli, an ally of the AK Party. This is by inviting the separatist leader and founder of the Workers’ Party, Abdullah Ocalan, who has been imprisoned in Türkiye for a quarter of a century, to deliver a speech before parliament calling on his party to renounce violence. It immediately received the support of the opposition forces, as well as the government.
It would be difficult to consider the terrorist operation which targeted the Turkish Aerospace Industries TUSAŞ in the capital Ankara as a response to this call and an attempt to abort it. Such operations require an appropriate time for planning and preparation.
These separatist wings reject every peaceful initiative from Ankara, because they benefit from the state of war, and perhaps see the current regional situation as a great opportunity to transform separatist dreams into a real reality, starting in Syria, but soon moving to Türkiye and its huge Kurdish population in Anatolia. Such hope will not find support even within the separatists themselves, without Iranian support, which has even surpassed American support in its goals and objectives. The latter wants the Kurds to protect American interests in Syria, and to be “soldiers on the ground” if Washington needs them. It does not care about them being a threat to Türkiye or other countries in the region. As for Iran, it uses them for a direct reason, which is to pressure Türkiye and bargain with it over positions and interests in Syria in particular. Therefore, the PKK enjoys a semi-safe base in Sinjar in northern Iraq under the auspices of the militias affiliated with Iran.
[by SibaMadwar in Al-Modon]