Friday, September 25, 2009

BARGAINING OVER THE OCCUPATION OF SOUTH KURDISTAN

“In this, our age of infamy
Man's choice is but to be

A tyrant, traitor, prisoner:

No other choice has he.”

~ Aleksandr Pushkin.


There was something very interesting in Phil Giraldi's interview with Sibel Edmonds regarding South Kurdistan. Here is Sibel speaking, with my emphasis:


The monitoring of the Turks [by the FBI] picked up contacts with Feith, Wolfowitz, and Perle in the summer of 2001, four months before 9/11. They were discussing with the Turkish ambassador in Washington an arrangement whereby the U.S. would invade Iraq and divide the country. The UK would take the south, the rest would go to the U.S. They were negotiating what Turkey required in exchange for allowing an attack from Turkish soil. The Turks were very supportive, but wanted a three-part division of Iraq to include their own occupation of the Kurdish region. The three Defense Department officials said that would be more than they could agree to, but they continued daily communications to the ambassador and his defense attaché in an attempt to convince them to help.

Meanwhile Scowcroft, who was also the chairman of the American Turkish Council, Baker, Richard Armitage, and Grossman began negotiating separately for a possible Turkish protectorate. Nothing was decided, and then 9/11 took place.

Scowcroft was all for invading Iraq in 2001 and even wrote a paper for the Pentagon explaining why the Turkish northern front would be essential. I know Scowcroft came off as a hero to some for saying he was against the war, but he was very much for it until his client’s conditions were not met by the Bush administration.


What is happening here is that the neo-conservatives were discussing a Turkish occupation of South Kurdistan but it looks like they weren't able to swing the deal in the end. Brent Scowcroft, as the chairman of the American Turkish Council, was definitely working for Turkish interests during the period Sibel is talking about.

But when Turkey didn't get what it saw as it's portion of Iraq--the Kurdish region--Scowcroft opposed the war because his client opposed it.

Now, picture this: If there had been an American deployment from Turkey into the north of Iraq, the Americans would have kept moving toward the south while Turkish forces could have just walked in behind the Americans and parked themselves permanently in the autonomous Kurdish region.

Does that sound far-fetched? Read Sibel's words again. Sibel's words also tell me that the TBMM voted against a US deployment from Turkey and denied an American northern front not because it opposed the invasion or occupation or even the carving-up of Iraq, but the TBMM opposed an American deployment from Turkish soil because it was not going to be allowed to occupy South Kurdistan.

If Turkey had, in fact, ended up as occupiers of South Kurdistan, would it then consider Kerkuk to be a part of South Kurdistan? Would it then insist that Kerkuk be added to the Kurdish region?

Sibel also mentions that some of the individuals that the FBI knew to be spying for the Turks and the Israelis were working at the RAND Corporation, too. That brings up something else that was in the news recently:


“Under pressure from the military and nationalists, the government of Prime Minister Erdoğan might launch a large-scale, cross-border incursion into northern Iraq designed not only to weaken the PKK, the Kurdish insurgent group that has attacked Turkish forces, but also to hold and occupy KRG (Kurdistan Regional Government) territory to put pressure on the KRG government to crack down on the PKK or to forestall a KRG annexation of Kirkuk.”


It may very well be that the occupation of South Kurdistan is still on the Turkish table but my money says that if such an invasion takes place, Turkey will insist upon the annexation of Kerkuk. After all, there are millions of brother Turkmen there to bring into Ağabey's ever-loving arms.

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

I hope the word "millions" in "After all, there are millions of brother Turkmen there to bring into Ağabey's ever-loving arms." was a joke. There are a few thousand Turkomen and not all of them support Turkey or it's dirty tactics.

Turkey has had plans to invade South Kurdistan and take Kerkuk for a LONG time now. It's nothing new. They don't have the guts.

Berfo

Mizgîn said...

Berfo, I was being facetious with the use of the word "millions". I probably should have said "billions" since the number of Turkmen in South Kurdistan is continually overblown by the TC. And, yes, I know the biggest problem in this regard mainly lies with the ITF.

The significant thing about Sibel's words is that this is the first time that I can think of where the discussion of the division of Iraq with a Turkish occupation of South Kurdistan has been done between American officials and the official representative of the TC. And this is on FBI wiretaps.

In addition, for all those who thought the neo-cons or the realists were "friends" of Kurds, it's time to make a serious re-assessment.

Another thing in the interview that is truly amazing to me is the fact that these same people were supplying foreign governments with personal information that could be used to compromise others into feeding intelligence to those foreign governments.

If that ain't treason, then I don't know what is.

Hevallo said...

I remember those times so well, don't you? It was so obvious to anybody who followed the Neo Cons propaganda what they attempting to do. Mizgin Hewal, respect to you for your campaigning in support of Sibel Edmonds and her story. It is so important for the Kurdish issue. Serkeftin!

hamo said...

Why would Turkey occupy South Kurdistan officially while unofficially they own the land thanks to jash bastard masoud barzani and his dogs! Have you ever hear any real opposition from these cowards against to turkish bombings. Only, yesterday one civilian hurt his legs because of turkey's continues air raids.

These same jash bastards kept really quite about saddam's brutality unill USA brought Saddam down then as same as hungry dirty foxes one of the fat ars hole got in saddam's place in iraq and other declared himself a new dictator of the Kurds.

Gordon Taylor said...

"The report also proposes measures to stop Turkey from carrying out a military incursion into Iraq. One of the measures suggests putting pressure on KRG President Massoud Barzani to take steps to crack down on the PKK."

Right. I'm sure Barzani will do this. After all, he's never been up against the PKK before, has he?? This is amazing. Somebody from the RAND Corporation, no doubt making a nice six-figure salary, put this out and actually asked the US Government (or somebody) to pay for it.

Nobody with half a brain needs to be unemployed. He can always go to work for the RAND Corporation.

I don't think the Turks will invade So. Kurdistan. They have billions in investments. OYAK (TSK's pension fund, etc.) is everywhere down there, of course.

The TSK will next try its new toys: AWACS planes, drones, etc., against the guerrillas. The Turks' AWACS are gone from Seattle, as far as I can see. But will Iraq continue to allow them into its airspace? Yeah, they'll take the money and look the other way, probably.

Mizgîn said...

Points well taken, Hamo and Gordon. In fact, Gordon, I had quoted you a while back about the OYAK problem. Not only OYAK is there, but the Fethullahci, too, so there's no reason for a military invasion unless one simply wants to sell more military hardware and training programs.

Nor do I think that the pesmerge want anything to do with fighting PKK again. It was a disaster for them the last time around and I think the people would have serious objections to such Kurd-on-Kurd fighting.

Hevallo, I'm in agreement very much that Sibel's story is very important for the situation. You should check the artillery round she lobbed at our old friend Marc Grossman today. Something is noted in the comments there that I know you'll appreciate, from The Cohen Group website:


"Ambassador Grossman was U.S. Ambassador to Turkey 1994-1997. In Turkey, he promoted security cooperation, human rights and democracy and a vibrant U.S.-Turkish economic relationship. Ambassador Grossman had previously served as the embassy’s Deputy Chief of Mission from 1989 to 1992."


Ready? Altogether now: VOMIT!