'US Discreetly Reinforcing N. Iraq Military Bases'

An article by Simon Tisdall published in the British newspaper the Guardian yesterday (February 15) indicated that Kurdish success in Iraq's elections on January 30th, have fuelled Turkey's concerns about Kurdish independence. Tisdall's "World Briefing" titled "Poll Success Fuels Turkish Fears over Kurdish Independence" pointed out that the Kurdish Alliance of Jalal Talabani and Massoud Barzani won 59 percent of the provincial council vote. The Turkmen Front, meanwhile, which represents a minority that Ankara has promised to protect, received only 18 percent.

The article also touched upon Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's statements that Turkey will not stay quiet about the developments in Kirkuk and noted that some nationalists in Turkey still regard Kirkuk as Turkish territory. Tisdall quoted a Turkish diplomat who said: "Kirkuk is the number one security issue and public concern right now. Kirkuk is a potential powder keg. For us it has special status. It is like Jerusalem. It belongs to all the people. We do not want to intervene in Iraq, but we have red lines: Kirkuk and attacks on ethnic minorities."

'PKK Could be a Reason for Intervention'

The article stressed that the formation of an independent Kurdish state in northern Iraq could ignite the Kurdish minority in southeast Turkey and that a possible intervention might cause the US and the European Union (EU) to react even though they continue to oppose Kurdish independence. Tisdall referred to US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice's emphasis on Iraq's integrity during her Ankara contacts, but also noted that Washington's reluctance to intervene in the Kurdistan Worker's Party (PKK), which continues its activities in northern Iraq, might tempt Ankara to takeaction. The analysis disclosed that the US has been reinforcing its military bases in northern Iraq.