The Kurdish issue gains ground

The Palestinian question enjoys international interest as one of the hottest issues in the Middle East for the past six decades. Several wars also took place as a result and the cold war continues until this very day.

The Kurdish question has also played a distinctive role in destabilising the region, especially Iraq. Nevertheless, it has not received the attention it deserves from the media.

This Kurdish cause will also lead to new internal wars in the Middle East, which may spread to other locations as well.

The Kurds succeeded in internationalising their cause in the past. They also succeeded in enlisting their cause in conferences held after the First World War by the victorious powers of the day.

The Kurds were given several promises to realise their national aspirations, making use of the US president Woodrow Wilson's Fourteen Points before Congress, which mentioned the right of autonomous development for other nationalities within the former Ottoman Empire.

The victors soon refused to acknowledge their promises. In the Lausanne conference in 1923, the superpowers set their promises aside. They stood by modern Turkey which was a nationalist state established by Mustafa Kamal Ataturk, and a close friend of the West.

The land inhabited by the Kurds was divided among four countries: three of which were governed by nationalist countries, such as Turkey, Syria and Iraq (till recently). This meant exposing the Kurds to a lot of pressure to be a part of the people of the new country they happened to be a part of.

In the last seven decades, the Kurdish armed resistance in Iraqi Kurdistan opposed the central government in Baghdad. The first armed protest took place in the mid 1930s and the last was in 1991 after the second Gulf War.

Since the downfall of the former Iraqi regime in April 2003, the Kurds played an important role in shaping the new Iraqi image. The Kurdish leadership has been keen not to refer to a state of their own. They were always careful never to touch upon this very delicate issue. On the other hand, the very same Kurdish leadership has worked over the years to make the Kurdish region as independent as possible from Iraq, through numerous procedures limiting the authority of the central government and eliminating its existence.

This has led to many questions and worries, locally and regionally. Locally, there are several question marks concerning the right of the Iraqi central government in the oil wealth which exists in the Kurdish area. The ministry of defence on the other hand feels totally useless in defending the Iraqi Kurdish locations which might come under threat.

On the regional level, Turkey, Iran and Syria look with discontent to the distinguished Kurdish position in Iraq, and the true intentions of the US regarding this matter.

The limited military operations carried out by the Kurdish Labour Party did require this tough retaliation from Ankara. The heavy artillery and weapons moved to the borders by the Turks were not suitable for mountainous terrain, such as those used as hideout for members of the PKK. These weapons are suitable for invading cities.

Essence of the problem

The essence of the problem between Iraq and Turkey today is that Iraq is a weak state, the government is unable to enforce its laws or sovereignty over its territories, nor is it able to stop Kurdish rebels from trespassing Turkish borders from Iraq.

The Iraqi government is also unable to apply pressure on Turkey to stop blowing up the situation out of proportions.

Thus, Iraq is asking other countries to interfere on its behalf, risking future interferences in its own internal affairs.

Turkey does not recognise Iraq's Kurdistan as a region and does not accept to conduct talks with its representatives. It also accuses the Iraqi Kurds of backing Kurdish rebels.

Although the Kurdish Labour Party is considered a terrorist group by the US, Turkey and the Iraqi government, the government in Iraq's Kurdistan has a totally different view regarding this issue.

Masoud Barazani, the president of the Iraqi Kurdistan region said lately that the PKK has not refused a peaceful solution to the crisis, presented by the Turks. Barazani also said in a joint press conference with British Prime Minister Brown : "When the PKK refuses a peaceful initiative from the Turks, then we shall call them terrorists."

This crisis is not over yet, and its repercussions are not to the interest of Iraq. The Istanbul conference which was held to support Iraq turned to be a platform to back Turkey.

This crisis has also witnessed the first fallout between the coalition of four (the two Kurdish parties, the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq and Al Dawa party) as evident to their different stands.

The crisis has also embarrassed the US, which volunteered giving the Turks information about the Kurdish rebels.

The US cannot antagonise Turkey due to its strategic importance in the area.

The Iraqi Kurds have agreements with the US as early as 1991, to achieve their national aspirations. But after all this time and sacrifices by the Kurds, will they continue trusting the US intentions after the way they have handled the crisis?

Dr Mohammad Akif Jamal is an Iraqi writer based in Dubai.