BY ISMET BERKAN
RADIKAL- Columnist Ismet Berkan comments on the prospect of Turkey deploying its troops to Iraq. A summary of his column is as follows:
The United Nations’ headquarters in Baghdad fell prey Tuesday to a huge truck-bomb attack that killed more than 20 UN staffers and injured scores more. All of these people had left their own warm, safe homes and were in Baghdad just to try and help the Iraqis. As I watched the horrific scenes of the shattered building and bleeding victims on television, two retired generals were commenting on this devastating incident. I couldn’t believe my ears. These two retired generals, who I believe were once engaged in our own fight against terrorism, were simply shedding crocodile tears. On the surface they seemed sad, but inside they were very pleased indeed.
There is a new trend in Turkey which I call ‘reactive politics,’ a sheer reflexive stance induced by a reaction to the West and particularly to the US. One may find the Iraq war unjust, but one should also realize the gravity of the actual situation there. We are Turkish citizens. That is why we must see things from Turkey’s side. If this perspective is pointing at some foreign policy issues, then of course, we must feel ourselves bound by certain moral rules.
I think that the main question we need to answer is this: Would a stable, democratic Iraq – if that at all is possible, given that the country is being dragged further into chaos with each passing day – serve Turkey’s interests or not? In other words, would a chaotic situation in Iraq, one in which invasion forces get bogged down in a swamp by mounting terrorist attacks and a prolonged state of turmoil, be to our country’s benefit? Could a possible US failure in Iraq – as our two retired generals possibly wished – actually work in Turkey’s best interests? It is one thing to debate whether the future stability of Iraq would be to Ankara’s benefit, and it’s quite another to discuss the prospect of sending Turkish troops there to help Iraq’s stabilization.