Turkey General hints at fight against both
the PKK and Barzani
Friday, June 1, 2007
Gen. Buyukanit reiterates the military's readiness for an incursion into
northern Iraq to quash PKK camps, making it clear he will not make a request in
writing as he has already sought government approval to take military action
SERKAN DEMIRTASH
ISTANBUL – Turkish Daily News
Chief of General Staff Gen. Yashar Buyukanit yesterday hinted at military action
against Iraqi Kurdish leader Massoud Barzani and the terrorist organization
Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) in northern Iraq if the government formally
requests a cross-border operation.
“Are we going to fight only the PKK once we enter northern Iraq or will
something happen with Barzani?” Buyukanit asked while speaking to reporters in
Istanbul on the sidelines of an international symposium organized by the Turkish
Armed Forces. “These are serious things. The government should lay out its
political aims to me.”
Barzani angered Turkey when he threatened to stir up Turkish cities in the
southeast if the Turkish army were to intervene in the northern Iraqi city of
Kirkuk. It is the first time that the Turkish army hinted at military action
against Barzani, who controls the northern part of Iraq with tens of thousands
of peshmerga forces.
Referring to a very recent debate with the government over parliamentary
authorization for an incursion into northern Iraq, Gen. Buyukanit said he had
already sought government approval to mount military action. “We told both
Turkey and the world on April 12 that as soldiers we are ready.”
“I can't make a written request,” he said. “What do they expect from me? The
political officials will set up the political targets and then the military
ranks will fix a strategy… This is how things are done in a state.”
Buyukanit emphasized that it was not just the PKK and Barzani complicating
matters in northern Iraq but also the United States was creating complications
in the region. Dismissing claims that there is unusual military movement in
Turkey's southeast where tanks and other military vehicles are reportedly
building up near the border, Buyukanit asked the media to be more responsible in
reporting such stories. “These reports create an expectation among the people,
and this is something wrong,” he said.
Dolmabahche meeting to remain secret
The top general responding to a question about his recent meeting with Prime
Recep Tayyip Erdogan at Dolmabahche Palace following the military's e-memo in
the presidential election process said that he will not reveal the content and
added, “Some issues will never be unveiled.”
When asked about the two U.S. F-16 jets that violated Turkish airspace, Gen.
Buyukanit said that the United States has satellites to monitor the Iraqi
border, and that “the United States does not need to send F-16s to do so.”
Some Turkish media described the infringement as a deliberate attempt at
intimidation as Ankara was discussing a possible cross-border operation into
northern Iraq to quash the PKK camps.
He also confirmed that military equipment was found in a derailed train in
Bingol and added that an investigation was underway.
Era of dark wars
Buyukanit said classical approaches to combating today's threats have completely
lost validity, and added that “the actors making war have also changed.” “I
wonder if the cold war has been replaced by dark wars at this current point,” he
said.
“When we take a look at terrorism in terms of its sources, we see that some of
our allies intend to define terrorism as an act that only arises from the
radical abuse of religion – but this is not the only definition of terrorism,
Buyukanit said.
“Terror also stems from ethnic, nationalist and fascist activities. The
terrorist Kurdistan Workers' Party, which Turkey faces today, has such a
structure,” he added.
He described economic manipulations imposed on countries, micro-ethnic
provocations, redefinition of countries' regimes and orders, rebellions and
irrational titles added before country names as examples of new approaches that
can be termed “dark war.”
Allied countries support the PKK
Gen. Buyukanit argued that some of the allies extended direct or indirect
support for PKK terrorism.
“Let me put it clearly today that among our allies some give direct and indirect
support to PKK terror and we are deeply disappointed by that,” he said. Giving a
“concrete example,” he said that “in Turkey, terrorists use a variety of
explosives” and that “the mines used against Turkey are known as ‘heel
detacher,' C4, A3, A4 and similar explosives,” which are used in all sorts of
murders and are “not sold in supermarkets.”
Gen. Buyukanit said a broadcasting channel that serves as a mouthpiece for the
terrorist organization and disseminates propaganda was active within the borders
of an allied country, in apparent reference to Denmark allowing broadcasts of
Roj TV.
“I hope they (Danish authorities) will be able to say ‘No, you are not telling
the truth' in response to my remarks, instead of showing political reactions.
But they will be unable to do so,” he added.
Supporters are also terrorists
Pointing to deepening discrepancies between prosperous and poor countries, Gen.
Buyukanit said more concrete solutions should be found to eliminate such
structural problems. “It is inevitable that not only those who launch attacks
but also those who provide terrorists with financial, logistical and propaganda
support will be recognized as terrorists.”
