October 22, 2007
Turkey Forestalls Iraq Invasion
In what could be a tipping point in the conflict between Turkey's government and Kurds in northern Iraq, Kurdish forces ambushed a Turkish convoy on Sunday just three miles from the border. Twelve Turkish soldiers were killed and eight more are still missing.
Turkish forces responded by shelling an area near Kurdish towns and destroying a bridge, and AP reports that dozens of military vehicles were headed toward the border to join the tens of thousands of troops already gathered there. The Turkish government believes thousands of PKK rebels are also massed at the border.
But today, Turkish Foreign Minister Ali Babacan said his government would try to seek a political solution to the conflict before an invasion. Tension has been mounting for months, and last week, Turkey's parliament authorized incursions into Iraqi Kurdistan to hunt down rebels in the area.
"We will continue these diplomatic efforts with all good intentions to solve this problem caused by a terrorist organization," Babacan told reporters. "But in the end, if we do not reach any results, there are other means we might have to use."
Defense Secretary Robert Gates also said yesterday that he didn't foresee an invasion in the near future. Gates advised Turkish Defense Minister Vecdi Gonul not to stage a major offensive into Kurdistan.
"I'm heartened that he seems to be implying a reluctance on their part to act unilaterally, and I think that's a good thing," Gates told reporters after a meeting between the two men. "I didn't have the impression that anything was imminent."
In response to the weekend ambush, Iraqi President Jalal Talabani, himself a Kurd, ordered the rebels to stop fighting or leave the country. Iraq's parliament passed a resolution in late September promising to crack down on the group, but Turkish officials argue that nothing has been done.
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said he spoke to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice by phone last night and that his country expects "speedy steps from the U.S." to crack down on the PKK. He said Rice asked "for a few days" but expressed sympathy about the situation. The White House officially condemned the ambush.
More than 2,000 protesters took to the streets in Istanbul yesterday to denounce the government and call for Erdogan's resignation, according to a Turkish news agency. But pro-Turkey nationalists also demonstrated to call for an immediate strike against rebel bases in retaliation for the attack.
Map: Reuben Dalke
