The days when Iraqi Kurds were seeking asylum in the Southeast of Turkey to escape Saddam’s massacre. The days when Turkish special forces and Barzani’s peshmergas were fighting side by side against PKK terrorists.The last high-level meeting between Turkish state and Iraqi Kurdish leaders was when the head of the National Intelligence Organization (MIT) secretly visited the region in 2004. Despite the fact that Iran shares similar concerns on the future of Iraq and the status of Kurdistan, this has not prevented very high level dialogue between Tehran and Kurdish leaders. Very recently, Talabani visited Tehran for the fourth time as Iraqi president and was received at the highest level. Although Arab countries also have grave concerns regarding the occupation and ethnic and sectarian fragmentation of Iraq, it is not a rare to see Talabani visiting the Arab capitals. Most recently he paid a visit to Damascus as the first Iraqi president to visit Syria in last 30 years.
The relations between Turkey and northern Iraq are in abundance at the level of the public. Many Turkish companies are active in building the infrastructure of the region. Habur is the most active trade “window” for the area, more than 70 percent of the trade is Turkey. In Erbil or Zaho, markets are full of Turkish products. Some youngsters are even having university education in Suleimaniye.
Despite all these positive signs of good relations, why are high-level contacts almost frozen? Government officials usually have a standard answer to that question. They say that dialogue at the highest level would be in Turkey’s best interests. But they also remind one that Talabani is the president of Iraq, hence it is President Sezer’s decision to invite him or not. For some time, we know that despite efforts from the Iraqi side to visit Turkey, Sezer does not agree on the usefulness of that visit.
When you dig deeper with Turkish diplomats, you realize that there are several important concerns, some of which are not raised publicly. They give a clearer picture about lack of contacts between Kurdish leaders and Ankara. One of the most important concerns is related to the draft “Constitution of the Iraqi Kurdistan Region.” It is a draft text, and Kurdistan Parliament recently extended the time to review it to April of this year in order to allow more opinions from experts and the public. What makes Ankara most nervous about the text is its reference to the Treaty of Sevres in the preamble. It states that “In spite of the 1920 Treaty of Sevres that recognized the right of self-determination in articles 62-64, international interests and political expediency prevented the Kurds from enjoying and practising this right.” Turkish diplomats argue that besides being undiplomatic, this is a distortion of the historical facts as well. They say Turks and Kurds fought back together against imperialists in order to tear apart that ugly document, which never had the status of a treaty. As a result they believe that referring back to that dark page from history is not only irrational, but also hostile.
Ankara’s second concern is also related to the constitution: Despite uncertainty on the future status of Kirkuk city, article 5 of the constitution claims that “The city of Kirkuk shall be the capitol of the Kurdistan Region.” This is seen as an irresponsible mindset that challenge the concerns which are shared by Iraqi groups, Turkey, neighboring countries and international communitiy.
A third concern is related to the lack of cooperation from Kurdish leaders against the PKK. They argue that if Kurdish administration has control over northern Iraq, it is an obligation not to harbor terrorists. But instead of fighting the PKK, they seem to be creating a friendly environment for terrorists. Giving an interview opportunity to one of the PKK leaders on their TV is seen as the single most provocative act.
In addition to those concerns, Ankara does not accept the current status of Kurdish region, arguing that the constititional process in Iraq has not yet been finalized. As a result, it should not be possible for Barzani to visit Ankara as president of Kurdistan Regional Government of Iraq, though recognized by that status when he visited the White House. They say that Barzani can visit Ankara any time, but as the head of the KDP (Kurdistan Democratic Party). It is very unfortunate for people on both sides that there is no dialogue between leaders in order to ease tensions, especially this year. But for the Turkish side the problem is not the lack of dialogue, but the laxness of the Kurdish leaders.
