HURRIYET- Columnist Ferai Tinc comments on the war on Iraq and Turkey’s relations with Washington and Brussels. A summary of her column is as follows:
Even before the war ends, the Bush administration has asked a number of large US construction firms to draw up proposals on Iraq’s postwar reconstruction. ‘In a matter of days the administration is expected to award a series of contracts that could total $900 million for rehabilitation of roads and other infrastructure and to administer Iraq's ports and airports,’ said British daily The Financial Times. ‘Five large US engineering and construction companies, including Bechtel and Halliburton, were asked to bid for the assignment last month.’ US Vice President Dick Cheney was a member of Halliburton’s board of directors. Here’s another interesting detail from the Financial Times: ‘Iraq's oil sector will require $5 billion in investment over three years to return it to pre-1991 production levels, according to a study by Rice University's Baker Institute. That would jump to $15 billion to achieve full production levels. You don't have to scratch very deep here to see how much money is going to be involved.’ By the way, the Baker Institute was established by one James Baker, the same James Baker who was secretary of state during the 1991 Gulf War. The paper added, ‘The initial contracts are expected to go to US companies because much of the rebuilding will be paid for by the US government. There are other reasons for US executives' optimism about a postwar Iraq. The country will probably be blanketed by a large contingent of allied troops, eliminating a big security headache for contractors. Unlike Afghanistan, Iraq may also have the makings of a robust consumer market. Most important, the country's oil wells should give it a steady cash flow to pay contractors.’ The daily also quoted a lobbyist as saying, ‘There are not a lot of people pushing to get involved in Afghanistan or Bosnia. There's no long-term pay-off there. People are much more excited about Iraq.’ Bush is expected to ask Congress for supplementary funding for such construction activities. These are the facts. These are the realities of the world we’re living in. However, with the Iraqi people even now suffering under heavy bombing, such realism truly sickens me! All the latest developments in Turkey’s foreign relations show that our country will never be able to establish sound relations with the US or the European Union without solving both the Kurdish and Cyprus problems. If the Kurdish problem has been completely resolved, why are we so bothered with the idea of a Kurdish state being established in northern Iraq? However, today, the Kurdish issue is still one of the most important problems for our country, as it is doing great damage to our relations with the US and Europe. These countries do not want Turkey to enter into northern Iraq. Moreover, the Cyprus issue is also another headache for us. Let’s not fool ourselves: We can’t establish steady, tension-free relations with Washington and Brussels without first solving these problems.
SOURCE: OFFICE OF THE PRIME MINISTER, DIRECTORATE GENERAL OF PRESS AND INFORMATION