BY M. ALI KISLALI
RADIKAL- Washington is trying to prevent Turkey from moving closer to Syria and Iran, which are both our neighbors and natural allies on the terrorist PKK and northern Iraq issues. The US wants Ankara to cancel President Ahmet Necdet Sezer’s visit to Syria next month. American diplomats are bringing up how Damascus embraced terrorist head Abdullah Ocalan for years, but conveniently forgetting that it also deported him when Ankara insisted.
We should accept that Turkey made one important mistake during its fight with the terrorist PKK. One of the key tasks in this fight was cutting foreign support for the terrorist group. However, Ankara failed to do this before 1999.
If the current Kurdish groups in Turkey, Iran and Syria as well as in northern Iraq came together under the roof a state which can be easily monitored, this would absolutely be to the benefit of all three countries. For years Turkey has been trying to develop a joint action plan with these countries. Thanks to Ankara’s efforts, today the terrorist PKK is unable to use Iranian territories against Turkey.
In brief, establishing good relations with these two countries is highly beneficial to our national interests. What I don’t get is why Washington believes otherwise. Is Turkey provoking Syria and Iran against Washington? Is Ankara saying to these countries, ‘Turn down Washington’s demands and we’ll support you?’ Or is Turkey recommending that they act with common sense, just as it did with Saddam Hussein prior to the US invasion?
Ankara diplomatic sources insist that there is no threat or prospect of threats from our neighbors. But why are we under pressure about these two countries? Isn’t Turkey making recommendations to Iran on the nuclear issue and Syria on withdrawing from Lebanon? Or maybe Washington is using these two countries as a pretext to pressure Ankara about more sensitive issues.