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Politics : Foreign Policy Discussion Thread -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: ig who wrote (5301)	3/22/2003 7:34:43 AM
From: E. T.	Respond to of 15987

Chamchamal, Norther Iraq/Istanbul — American hopes for a smooth takeover of northern Iraq were undermined last night as an ethnic bloodbath appeared to be under way in one city and Turkish forces began moving south against the wishes of the Pentagon. As waves of U.S. warplanes hit Iraqi targets across the north, at least 60 Kurds were executed by Iraqis in an apparent sweep of revenge killings in the oil centre of Kirkuk, according to local residents. The minority Kurds faced a further threat from the north this morning as Turkish forces began rolling across the border to contain and possibly confront Kurdish forces. The executions in Kirkuk were confirmed by local residents leaving the city, as well as by senior government officials in the neighbouring Kurdish enclave. Kurdish officials said the executions took place at the Khalid garrison on the edge of Kirkuk, within the last 48 hours, after some people were caught last week trying to use satellite phones. People fleeing the area reported Iraqi forces rounding up ethnic Turkmen and Kurdish men older than 14 in an effort to prevent a repeat of the uprising in Kirkuk that followed the 1991 Persian Gulf war. The threat of a Kurdish uprising was cited by Turkish leaders as the reason for a sudden decision to send forces across their southeastern border. A commando force of at least 1,000 Turks crossed into Iraq last night, and tens of thousands of others were poised to enter the fray. "Turkish units have begun crossing into northern Iraq to take security measures at various points," a military official told the Reuters news agency early this morning. "These units will secure the safety of units that will follow. Further crossings will take place at various intervals," the Turkish military source said. He gave no timetable. The move alarmed United States and European officials, who warned that a Turkish confrontation with the Kurds could spiral into another war and possibly a three-way conflict, since Iranian troops have reportedly massed near northern Iraq to counter any perceived Turkish invasion. Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul said Turkish forces were needed to prevent Kurdish separatist groups from engaging in terrorism, and to make sure Iraq becomes a multiethnic state rather than a federation of ethnic regions, which many Kurds desire. "Turkey does not have any intention regarding Iraqi soil," Mr. Gul said. "What is important for us is to protect Iraq's territorial integrity, to accept that Iraqi resources belong to whole Iraq, to accept that Iraq's main elements — Arabs and Turkmens — should be represented according to their population." Turkey has spoken of not going beyond a "buffer zone" that would extend 20 kilometres into northern Iraq. But officials warned that troops could go deeper if Turkey's national interests were threatened. Mr. Gul also indicated that the soldiers would forcibly block Iraqi Kurds from fleeing north of the border and joining Turkish Kurds. "Migration to Turkey should be prevented before immigrants enter [the] Turkish border," he said. While Turkish leaders insisted that the troops would be used for humanitarian purposes, U.S. and European Union officials reacted with displeasure. U.S. Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld reacted harshly to the Turkish threat, which was fast becoming apparent through the day. At a Pentagon press briefing, he said the United States would ensure stability in the Kurdish areas. "We have Special Forces units connected to Kurdish forces in the north . . . and you can be certain that we have advised the Turkish government and the Turkish armed forces that it would be notably unhelpful if they went into the north in large numbers," Mr. Rumsfeld said. Turkey has long tried to suppress its own Kurdish minority by banning their culture, outlawing political parties and sometimes engaging in bloody attacks. After the 1991 Persian Gulf war, it waged a brutal crackdown on Kurds in eastern Turkey. "A vacuum was formed in northern Iraq and that vacuum became practically a camp for terrorist activity. This time, we do not want such a vacuum," Mr. Gul said. Despite Washington's displeasure, the troop movement may be the result of a tacit agreement between the United States and Turkey. On Thursday, the Turkish parliament voted to allow U.S. bombers to fly over their country's airspace toward Iraq. But yesterday, Turkey refused to allow U.S. bombers over its territory until Washington agreed to its demand to allow its troops into Iraq. U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell spoke several times by telephone yesterday with Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan as United States diplomatic officials held negotiations in Ankara late into the night, finally reaching an agreement in time for bombers to cross Turkey and participate in the later waves of last night's air strikes. Turkish military authorities told reporters last night that they had sent 1,500 troops into Iraq and reporters from several agencies said that tens of thousands of Turkish troops had mobilized near the border. Yesterday, Richard Boucher, spokesman for the U.S. State Department, said Washington was "opposed to unilateral action by Turkey or by any party in northern Iraq." The European Union also reacted, warning that an attack on Kurds could prevent Turkey from joining Europe. Greek Foreign Minister George Papandreou, who currently holds the EU presidency, suggested yesterday that a Turkish military action against the Kurds could create a human-rights crisis and jeopardize Turkey's bid to join the EU, due for ratification in 2007. "Obviously Turkey is a concern. Turkey is a candidate, Turkey has a future in Europe. But what we would not want is the conflict in Iraq to create problems," Mr. Papandreou said. "It could create polarizations, it could create nationalism and all this could undermine the reform process in Turkey and this could be a very negative development." globeandmail.ca