BY MELIHA OKUR
SABAH - The crisis broke out in the US, and a solution will come from the US as well. Nobody expects a magical solution from US President Barrack Obama, who is only set to take office today, but we all want the US to establish a new system as soon as possible. What will Obama do? Of course, he'll clean house, start stimulus packages, and accelerate consumption. He'll also focus on Iraq and then Iran, Afghanistan and the Middle East.
Some 15,000 American soldiers will be withdrawn from Iraq this year. Which countries will protect Iraq and its oil and natural gas transportation lines will emerge during this time. After all, Turkey has a good dialogue with Baghdad.
Our Foreign Ministry acts like an elder brother to Bagdad. Turkey even organized Iraq's purchase of military materiel and equipment from Ukraine. If the diplomatic channels are open, as they are now, there should be no problem.
The Iraqi government isn't idle, either. Next month it will bring together in Istanbul oil companies which have gotten authorization to extract Iraq's oil and natural gas. The oil companies would do nothing in a place where they lack confidence. So Iraq will be relieved in the months to come. That's why the oil summit is important for Turkey. The way Iraqi oil and natural gas will be extracted and brought to world markets and even connected to the Nabucco project, which is led by Turkey, are also very important!
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan is dealing the energy card against the Greek Cypriot administration, which for years has all but locked energy talks in the European Union. This can turn the Iraq issue and the crisis into an opportunity, because the meeting in Istanbul will deal with not only the extraction and transportation of Iraqi oil and natural gas, but also construction investments. Turkey must get a large share of the construction investments this time.
Iraq can purchase materials via Kuwait and through Dubai. Dubai can also be involved in the construction of an oil and natural gas pipeline in the Basra region. But it's very difficult to carry materials through Dubai for pipeline construction in northern Iraq. It's much easier to reach Erbil via Turkey. So we shouldn't waste time. The Economic Coordination Council (EKK) should convene to deal with this issue, and border crossings in eastern and southeastern Anatolia should be made easier. In addition, the Mersin Free Trade Zone should be reviewed, and contractors abroad should be prepared for this. Turkey should turn the crisis into an opportunity!