Turkey

[Seeker]

Hi Mr Dan,

Always nice to see lurkers come out of the closet. From the looks of your posts you came out well prepared. Looking forward to more discussions with you.

Peace,
Seeker

[Seeker]

Spotlight: Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey

...."When Erdogan — whose wife, Emine, unlike the partners of his predecessors, wears a headscarf in public — became prime minister in 2002, members of the Westernized business community in Turkey, who generally avoid overt religious displays, initially were mistrustful of someone who seemed so different from what they were used to. Now, some of them are his biggest fans.

"He is a very charismatic gentleman with very sharp thinking," said Suzan Sabanci, a member of one of Turkey's powerful business families and managing director of Akbank, one of the largest banks in Turkey. "He put Turkey joining the EU as the No. 1 priority on his agenda. The government has done a lot of economic and social reforms, and foreign direct investment shows this."....

http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/12/29/business/wbspot30.php?page=1

[Seeker]

Turkey Is The Symbol Country Of Living In Peace And Unity, Erdogan

ANKARA - "Turkey is the symbol country of living in peace and unity in a world where violence and hatred gradually grow among different beliefs and cultures," Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Saturday."....

http://www.turkishpress.com/news.asp?id=157362

[Seeker]

Turkish Premier To Visit Lebanon Next Week

Turkish Prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan will visit Lebanon next week to meet political leaders and visit Turkish troops serving with UNIFIL, a Lebanese government spokesman said Saturday.

During the one-day visit on January 3, Erdogan will meet President Emile Lahoud, Prime Minister Fouad Seniora, Parliament speaker Nabih Berri and Saad Hariri, head of the Lebanese anti-Syrian majority.

According to the source, Erdogan will discuss Turkey's "contributions to UNIFIL and the country's reconstruction and what Turkey can do to contribute to efforts to overcome the current political crisis engulfing the country." .....

Playfuls.com

[Seeker]

Erdogan's visit offers a chance to defuse tensions in Lebanon

....."It is easy to see how Turkey can play a constructive role in helping Lebanon navigate its way out of its current crisis. Erdogan is one of few international leaders who has managed to maintain good relations with a wide range of international players in what has become an increasingly polarized world. This past year alone, Erdogan himself and/or senior members of his ruling Justice and Development Party have held talks with everyone from US President George W. Bush to Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Syrian President Bashar Assad, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal.

Erdogan has defended his decision to maintain contacts with officials whom other countries have blacklisted as "terrorists" - a move that has drawn criticism from both outside and inside Turkey. Erdogan rightly points out out that his country has long utilized its wide range of ties in order to facilitate dialogue and promote regional peace and stability. It is precisely Ankara's adeptness at using soft power and diplomatic muscle to resolve conflicts that makes Turkey a mediator and problem solver in the region. And it is this trait that makes Erdogan's visit to Lebanon both timely and welcome."...

Daily Star

[Exit40]

Turkey is EU's Rising Star in Jewelry
By Isa Yazar

zaman.com

Based on the data from the last 26 years, a governmental agency has concluded that the jewelry sector is Turkey’s most productive industry based on capital efficiency.

The National Center for Productivity (MPM), a governmental agency charged with measuring productivity, has recently conducted a comprehensive study to determine the level of efficiency in a number of sectors.

Turkish jewelry exports amounted to 1 billion 172 million dollars last year. Ranking second after Italy, Turkey is expanding its market share.

MPM predicts that Turkey will be the rising star of the European Union in the jewelry sector.

Noting that the jewelry sector has made remarkable progress over the last five years, the report believes the Turkish jewelry sector will dramatically improve in the future and gain substantial market shares within EU countries.

Because of Turkey’s geography, jewels and precious stones have been produced and crafted here for more than five thousands years. The report feels Turkey has overwhelming potential in this field.

According to their research, the second most efficient sector was petrochemical industry. Apparel, forestry products and furniture were the least productive, the study shows.

http://www.zaman.com/?bl=economy&trh=20 ... &syf=butun

************* My bold *****************

God Bless

David

[Exit40]

Trade with Turkey booms despite political strains

By Ibrahim Boazzi

Azzaman, January 1, 2007

Turkish exports to Iraq are booming despite political differences.

The Turks are using the relatively quiet Kurdish north as a base for their exports to Iraq.

Iraq currently relies heavily on imports to meet domestic needs including fuel, thought it sits on massive oil reserves.

Iraq’s import bill is estimated at $15 billion and at least one third of it goes to Turkey which has set up a permanent trade exhibition in the Iraqi Kurdish city of Arbil.

Turkish contractors are carrying out several projects in the Kurdish north whose markets brim with Turkish imports.

The surge in trade comes amid strains in political relations as both the Kurdish authorities and the central government complain of Ankara’s ties with certain political factions in the country.

Late last year Turkey hosted a conference by Iraqi opposition groups, namely Sunni factions bent on driving U.S. troops out of Iraq.

The meeting drew criticism from the government and President Jalal Talabani.

The Turks openly support demands by Iraqi Turkmen for some form of autonomy in their areas in the oil-rich province of Kirkuk which the Kurds want to add to their territory.

The Turkmen oppose Kurds’ attempts to annex Kirkuk and have vowed to do whatever it takes not to let that happen.

lINK

God Bless

David

[Seeker]

Turkey’s military satellite program: a model for emerging regional powers

by Taylor Dinerman
Tuesday, January 2, 2007

Turkey’s air force is planning to spend at least $200 million to buy and launch an electro-optical reconnaissance satellite with a resolution of 80 centimeters. They hope to have it in orbit and operational by 2011. They are apparently not going to impose the onerous “local content requirements” that have recently bedeviled so many Turkish military procurement programs. This suggests that this is being treated as a priority and the Turkish military is not going to allow local industrial politics to get in the way of their need for broad, persistent, and sovereign regional observation.

As a NATO member Turkey has some access to information from US satellites, and they can also buy imagery on the open market from Spot Image, DigitalGlobe, or others. In spite of this, they want to have their own satellite and later they will surely want to have an all-weather radar imaging system and multi- and hyperspectral capability. Turkey is in a geopolitically rough neighborhood, and their need to be able to keep track of what is happening throughout the region is all too obvious. Space-based observation is one important way that they can keep track of activities in places like Armenia, Iraq, or the Aegean Sea, where Turkey’s national security interests are at stake.".....

http://www.thespacereview.com/article/774/1

[Exit40]

Turkish prime minister says U.S. not helping Turkey counter Kurdish rebels
The Associated PressPublished: January 3, 2007
ANKARA, Turkey: The Turkish prime minister accused the United States on Wednesday of not living up to a pledge to help counter autonomy-seeking Kurdish rebels, despite the appointment of a special envoy to address the threat guerrillas pose to Turkey, a news report said.

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said no action had been taken to expel the Kurdistan Workers Party, or PKK, from its bases in northern Iraq or to cut off financial support to the rebel group, CNN-Turk television reported.

"We were expecting serious steps, but these did not materialize," the station's Web site quoted Erdogan as telling reporters during a flight to Lebanon.

The United States, under increasing pressure from Turkey, in August appointed retired Gen. Joseph Ralston, a former NATO supreme allied commander, as its special envoy for countering the PKK.

The rebel group has been fighting for autonomy in Turkey's largely Kurdish southeast since 1984 — a fight that has left some 37,000 dead. The PKK is considered a terrorist organization by the U.S. and the European Union.

The U.S. has warned Turkey against such action, fearing a Turkish incursion could alienate Iraqi Kurds — the most pro-American group in the region.

Erdogan said Wednesday that PKK offices were still operating across the border, despite assurances from Iraq that they had been closed, CNN-Turk reported.

Turkey's support to the United States in its war against terrorism was not being reciprocated, Erdogan was quoted as saying.

"Give us support in the same way that we support you in your fight against terrorism," CNN-Turk quoted Erdogan as saying.

The PKK declared a unilateral cease-fire, which came into effect on Oct. 1, following a surge of violence that left more than a dozen soldiers and policemen dead and injured tourists over a period of a few weeks. Turkey has ignored the truce, however, and has vowed to fight on until all rebels surrendered or were killed.

Link

God Bless

David

[Seeker]

Erdogan says peace in region is key to the world peace

Wednesday, January 03, 2007 - 03:30 PM

Ankara, (SANA)-Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyeb Erdogan on Wednesday underlined that "the realization of peace in the Middle East is the key to the world peace".

"Turkey exerts efforts within this framework to achieve stability in Lebanon," Erdogan, heads to Lebanon, said in a statement.

He added "I will discuss in Lebanon what could be done to solve the current political stalemate the country is facing."

Mazen

http://www.sana.org/eng/22/2007/01/03/94877.htm

[Seeker]

Erdogan says Turkey ready to mediate in Lebanon crisis

Dialogue is the only possible way to resolve Lebanon's ongoing political crisis, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Wednesday (January 3rd), warning that further tensions could impact the entire Middle East. Turkey, he said, is ready to join efforts to end the standoff between Lebanon's pro-Western government and the Hezbollah-led pro-Syrian opposition, if asked to do so.

The political crisis erupted in November following the resignations of six pro-Hezbollah cabinet ministers. Since December 1st, Hezbollah has been leading a mass sit-in in downtown Beirut in a bid to topple the government.

"We favour domestic peace and political unity amongst Lebanese," Erdogan told reporters following talks with his Lebanese counterpart, Fouad Siniora, in Beirut on Wednesday. "I told Siniora that sectarian differences will have repercussions on the region. I also told him that all parties in Lebanon and all states in the region must act to solve this problem."

Erdogan, who visited Hezbollah's main allies -- Syria and Iran -- last month, said Ankara had contacted all domestic and regional parties in a bid to help end the political stalemate in Lebanon.

Citing Turkey's good relations with the Arab world, Siniora said it could play "an important role" in efforts to resolve the Lebanese crisis.".....

Southeastern European Times

[Seeker]

Turkey: U.S. makes no concrete steps against PKK

Thursday , 04 January 2007

..."When asked what he meant by serious steps, Erdogan said:

“There are camps in the region and the terrorist network is holding activities there. U.S. officials say they closed several offices but we saw they did not. Terrorists enter Turkey and they have U.S.-origin weapons and bombs. We found these with the terrorists that were arrested. I openly said this to U.S. officials. I talked to US President George Bush on the phone after I came back from Riga. We said ‘Let us cooperate against terrorist networks disturbing us if we are strategic partners.’ They think we are right. If we are right, we should act accordingly.”

Concerning the developments in Iraq, Erdogan said the coalition forces have trouble in solving the problem and said neighboring countries may undertake a more active role for the solution.

“Iran and Syria can cooperate with us in this process. Iran says it can do it. We have a consensus with Syria as well. The United States can also contribute in this, what matters here is their decision,” Erdogan said.

Stating Turkey had an important role in the region, the prime minister said, “Countries in the region are having sectarian and ethnic problems. Turkey has no problem with any of these. We meet all of them whether Shiite, Sunni, Kurdish or Arab; we feel no hostility to any of them.”

Stating his visit to Lebanon was part of a Middle East tour, Erdogan said Turkey played a key role in Syria’s withdrawal of its 30,000 troops in Lebanon: “We requested Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to withdraw their troops from Lebanon. He said they would try to do so and do it because we requested it. Turkish President Sezer paid a visit to Syria and they withdrew their troops a week later.”....

http://www.turkishweekly.net/news.php?id=41952

[Seeker]

Israel plans nuclear strike on Iran over Turkey - paper

Israel has drawn up secret plans to destroy Iran's uranium enrichment facilities with tactical nuclear weapons and
three possible routes to Iran have been mapped out including one over Turkey, the Sunday Times said.

Citing what it said were several Israeli military sources, the paper said two Israeli air force squadrons had been training to blow up an enrichment plant in Natanz using low-yield nuclear "bunker busters". Two other sites, a heavy water plant at Arak and a uranium conversion plant at Isfahan, would be targeted with conventional bombs, the Sunday Times said.

On the claim that one of the possible routes of Israeli attack will be over Turkey, there was no immediate reaction from the Turkish authorities on Sunday.

Turkey is the only majority-Muslim nation that has strategic political and military relations with Israel. Tel Aviv and Ankara signed two strategic agreements, on defense industry cooperation and military cooperation, in 1996, and they have been holding critical annual meetings, especially on regional threats analysis, since that date.

Turkish Deputy Chief of General Staff Gen. Ergin Saygun held key talks with Israeli officials in Tel Aviv late last month on the recent developments in Middle East and the threat of the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction in the region.

Turkey also has close relations with neighboring Iran, and several high-level visits recently increased trust among Ankara and Tehran. But still Turkey expresses concern about Iran's Shahab missiles and their ranges as well as the possibility of Iran's using its nuclear capacity in weapons. Ankara says that Iran has the right to develop nuclear energy but opposes its acquisition of atomic weapons, saying this would spark an arms race across the region.

The U.N. Security Council voted unanimously last month to slap sanctions on Iran to try to stop uranium enrichment that Western powers fear could lead to making bombs. Tehran insists its plans are peaceful and says it will continue enrichment. Israel has refused to rule out pre-emptive military action against Iran along the lines of its 1981 air strike against an atomic reactor in Iraq, although many analysts believe Iran's nuclear facilities are too much for Israel to take on alone.

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's office said on Sunday it would not respond to the claim of the British newspaper. "We don't respond to publications in the Sunday Times," said Miri Eisin, Olmert's spokeswoman.

Israeli Minister of Strategic Threats Avigdor Lieberman also declined to comment on the report.

But Foreign Ministry spokesman Mark Regev said, "The focus of the Israeli activity today is to give full support to diplomatic actions and the expeditious and full implementation of Security Council resolution 1737. If diplomacy succeeds, the problem can be solved peaceably."

In Tehran, Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman Mohammad Ali Hosseini told a news conference that the newspaper report "will make clear to the world public opinion that the Zionist regime (Israel) is the main menace to global peace and the region". He said "any measure against Iran will not be left without a response and the invader will regret its act immediately."

Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has called for Israel to be "wiped off the map" and Israel has said it will not allow Iran to acquire a bomb. The Sunday Times quoted sources as saying a nuclear strike would only be used if a conventional attack was ruled out and if the United States declined to intervene. Disclosure of the plans could be intended to put pressure on Tehran to halt enrichment, the paper added.

It said the Israeli plan envisaged conventional laser-guided bombs opening "tunnels" into the targets. Nuclear warheads would then be used fired into the plant at Natanz, exploding deep underground to reduce radioactive fallout. Israeli pilots have flown to Gibraltar in recent weeks to train for the 2,000 mile (3,200 km) round-trip to the Iranian targets, the Sunday Times said, and three possible routes to Iran have been mapped out including one over Turkey.

Air force squadrons based at Hatzerim in the Negev desert and Tel Nof, south of Tel Aviv, have trained to use Israel's tactical nuclear weapons on the mission. The preparations have been overseen by Major General Eliezer Shkedi, commander of the Israeli air force. Sources close to the Pentagon told the British daily that the United States was highly unlikely to give approval for tactical nuclear weapons to be used. One source said Israel would have to seek approval "after the event", as it did when it crippled Iraq's nuclear reactor at Osirak with airstrikes in 1981.

Scientists have calculated that although contamination from the bunker-busters could be limited, tons of radioactive uranium compounds would be released.

The Israelis believe that Iran's retaliation would be constrained by fear of a second strike if it were to launch its Shehab-3 ballistic missiles at Israel.

However, American experts warned of repercussions, including widespread protests that could destabilize parts of the Islamic world friendly to the West.

Colonel Sam Gardiner, a Pentagon adviser, said Iran could try to close the Strait of Hormuz, the route for 20% of the world's oil.

Some sources in Washington said they doubted if Israel would have the nerve to attack Iran. However, Dr Ephraim Sneh, the deputy Israeli defense minister, said last month: "The time is approaching when Israel and the international community will have to decide whether to take military action against Iran."

http://www.thenewanatolian.com/tna-20813.html

[Seeker]

Government to defend Turkey’s interests: Erdogan

Turkey will pursue a active foreign policy in 2007 to defend the country’s interests, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Tuesday.

Güncelleme: 17:21 TSİ 09 Ocak 2007 Salı

ANKARA - Turkey would not stand by and watch developments, Erdogan told a meeting of parliamentary deputies of his ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) in Ankara. “We have started a busy diplomacy traffic with the EU, Asia, Africa and other countries of the world,” he said. “We have established close contact with Middle Eastern countries as well. Today, Turkey is the country which can understand what is going on in the Middle East and the region best.”.......

http://www.ntvmsnbc.com/news/396460.asp

[Seeker]

Erdogan's Kirkuk warning

..."Yesterday the Iraq issue was on Prime Minister Erdogan’s agenda, too. Addressing his parliamentarians in a group meeting, Erdogan said, “In particular, I am forced to make this warning as of today to those who are pursuing the division of Iraq and the idea that everything is finalized in Kirkuk. Looking at developments in Kirkuk, we can not remain an observer to the efforts to change its demographic structure. A referendum after these changes would not be right and we cannot remain bystanders to these changes.”

Prime Minister Erdogan’s harsh words about Kirkuk and Northern Iraq are not new. For some time he has been expressing Turkey’s worries in a similar tone. It is a conscious and preplanned move. The phrase, “we cannot remain observers to these developments,” which he repeated several times, is not an ordinary statement. It has an aspect that can turn into action. The statement of MIT Undersecretary Taner, “Turkey cannot leave itself to the flow of events,” is no different. They mean approximately the same thing."...

http://www.zaman.com/?bl=columnists&alt=&trh=20070111&hn=39824

[Seeker]

Turkey tensions rise as PM eyes presidency

January 11, 2007, 14:00

The big political question weighing on Turkish minds as a year of elections dawns is whether Tayyip Erdogan, the prime minister, will seek the presidency when it comes up for grabs in May. Turkish secularists, including powerful army generals, judges, academics and the business elite, increasingly fear Erdogan has already resolved to take the top job, though he says he will only announce his decision in April.

The secularists worry that the charismatic Erdogan, a former Islamist who once served a short jail sentence for reading a poem deemed too subversive, will try to erode Turkey's strict division of state and religion if elected president. Erdogan and his ruling centre-right AK Party deny any Islamist agenda but want to ease some strict curbs on religious expression, including on women's headscarves.

Military coup will create problems for Turkey
"Tensions will build up in the coming months, for sure, but in the final analysis the constitution is very clear. Parliament elects the president, and the AK Party has a big parliamentary majority right now," says William Hale, a veteran Turkey observer now at Istanbul's Sabanci University. "Erdogan is a clever political operator. The opposition can protest, but if he decides he wants to be president how can they stop him? They certainly can not launch a military coup, that will create appalling problems for Turkey," says Hale.

The army, long wary of Erdogan, has ousted four democratic governments in the past 50 years, most recently in 1997 in a "post-modern coup" - without tanks or guns but with strong public support - against an Islamist-minded prime minister. But in today's conditions such a drastic move is very hard to imagine. Since 2002, the AK Party has presided over robust economic growth, surging foreign investment and the launch of European Union membership talks and is expected to win another five-year mandate in parliamentary elections due in November.

Popular but controversial
Instead, analysts expect opposition parties to step up attacks on Erdogan's alleged Islamism, make claims of corruption and other malpractices in his party and perhaps resort to "dirty tricks" in an effort to derail any possible presidential bid. Many analysts agree that Erdogan has set his sights on the presidency when the seven-year mandate of Ahmet Necdet Sezer, a staunchly secularist incumbent ends in May. Sezer, a former judge who has vetoed many AK Party laws, cannot stand for re-election.

In Turkey, the prime minister wields more power but the president has great symbolic value as the heir of Kemal Ataturk, revered founder of the modern republic. He can veto laws once, appoints many key officials and is also commander-in-chief. "We all know Erdogan wants to be president, otherwise he would openly say now that he will not run, to defuse tensions," says Huseyin Bagci of Ankara's Middle East Technical University."...

http://www.sabcnews.com/world/europe/0,2172,141637,00.html

[Seeker]

Was showing something to Doug in another thread and thought I would post it here since this is the Turkey thread.

Peace,
Seeker

Mushki

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Mushki (Muški) were an Iron Age people of Anatolia, known from Assyrian sources. They do not appear in Hittite records.[1] Several authors have connected them with the Moschoi (Μόσχοι) of Greek sources and the Georgian tribe of the Meskhi. Josephus Flavius identified the Moschoi with the Biblical Meshech.

Two different groups are called Muški in the Assyrian sources (Diakonoff 1984:115), one from the 12th to 9th centuries, located near the confluence of the Arsanias and the Euphrates ("Eastern Mushki"), and the other in the 8th to 7th centuries, located in Cilicia ("Western Mushki"). Assyrian sources identify the Western Mushki with the Phrygians, while Greek sources clearly distinguish between Phrygians and Moschoi.

Identification of the Eastern with the Western Mushki is uncertain, but it is of course possible to assume a migration of at least part of the Eastern Mushki to Cilicia in the course of the 10th to 8th centuries, and this possibility has been repeatedly suggested, variously identifying the Mushki as speakers of a Georgian, Armenian or Anatolian idiom.

Eastern Muški

Originally, these "Eastern Mushki" may have occupied a territory in the area of Urartu. They appear to have moved into Hatti in the 12th century, completing the downfall of the collapsing Hittite state, establishing themselves in a post-Hittite kingdom in Cappadocia. Allied with the Hurrians and Kaskas, they invaded the Assyrian provinces of Alzi and Puruhuzzi in about 1160, but they were pushed back and defeated, along with the Kaskas, by Tiglath-Pileser I in 1115 BC, who until 1110 advanced as far as Milid.

Western Muški

In the 8th century, Tabal became the most influential of the post-Hittite polities, and the Mushki under Mita entered an anti-Assyrian alliance with Tabal and Carchemish. The alliance was soon defeated by Sargon of Assyria, who captured Carchemish and drove back Mita to his own province. Ambaris of Tabal was diplomatically married to an Assyrian princess, and received the province of Hilakku, but in 713 BC, Ambaris was deposed and Tabal became an Assyrian province.

In 709, the Mushki re-emerged as allies of Assyria, Sargon naming Mita as his friend. It appears that Mita had captured and handed over to the Assyrians emissaries of Urikki, king of Que, who were sent to negotiate an anti-Assyrian contract with Urartu, as they passed through his territory.

In 714 the Cimmerians invaded Urartu, breaking through the Caucasus. From there they turned west along the coast of the Black Sea as far as Sinope, and then headed south towards Tabal, in 705 defeating an Assyrian army in central Anatolia, resulting in the death of Sargon. Macqueen (1986:157) and others have speculated that the Mushki under Mita may have participated in the Assyrian campaign and were forced to flee to western Anatolia, disappearing from Assyrian accounts, but entering the periphery of Greek historiography as king Midas of Phrygia. Rusas II of Urartu in the 7th century fought the Mushki-ni to his west, before he entered an alliance with them against Assyria.

Moschoi

Hecataeus (c. 550 - 476 BCE) speaks of the Moschi as "Colchians" (perhaps, Georgian speaking), situated next to the Matieni (Hurrians).[2]

According to Herodotus, the equipment of the Moschoi was similar to that of the Tibareni, Macrones, Mossynoeci and Mardae, with wooden caps upon their heads, and shields and small spears, on which long points were set. All these tribes formed the 19th satrapy of the Achaemenid empire, extending along the southeast of the Euxine, or the Black Sea, and bounded on the south by the lofty chain of the Armenian mountains. Strabo locates the Moschoi in two places. The first location is somewhere in modern Abkhazia on the eastern shore of the Black Sea, in agreement with Stephan of Byzantium quoting Hellanicus.

The second location Moschice (Moschikê) – in which was a temple of Leucothea, once famous for its wealth, but plundered by Pharnaces and Mithridates – was divided between the Colchians, Armenians, and Iberians (cf. Mela, III. 5.4; Pliny VI.4.). These latter Moschoi were obviously the Georgian Meskhi or Mesx’i (where Greek χ, chi, is Georgian ხ, x). Procopius calls them Meschoi and says that they were subject to the Iberians (i.e., Georgians), and had embraced Christianity, the religion of their masters. According to Professor James R. Russell of Harvard University, the Georgian designation for Armenians Somekhi, preserves the old name of the Mushki.

Pliny in the 1st century AD mentions the Moscheni in southern Armenia ("Armenia" at the time stretching south and west to the Mediterranean, bordering on Cappadocia). In Byzantine historiography, Moschoi was a name equivalent to or considered as the ancestors of "Cappadocians" (Eusebius) with their capital at Mazaca (later Caesarea Mazaca, modern Kayseri).

Biblical Meshech

Josephus Flavius identified the Moschoi with the Biblical Japhetic tribe descended from Meshech in his writings on the Genealogy of the Nations in Genesis 10. Meshech is named with Tubal as a principality of the prince of Gog and Magog in Ezekiel 38:2 and 39:1.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mushki



In ancient geography, Cappadocia (from Persian: Katpatuka meaning "the land of beautiful horses", Greek: Καππαδοκία; see also List of traditional Greek place names; Turkish Kapadokya) was an extensive inland district of Asia Minor (modern Turkey). In the time of Herodotus the Cappadocians occupied the whole region from Mount Taurus to the Euxine (Black Sea).”…..

“…..Herodotus tells us that the name of the Cappadocians (Katpatouka) was applied to them by the Persians, while they were termed by the Greeks "Syrians" or "White Syrians" (Leucosyri). One of the Cappadocian tribes he mentions are the Moschoi, associated by Flavius Josephus with the biblical figure Meshech, son of Japheth, "and the Mosocheni were founded by Mosoch; now they are Cappadocians." AotJ I:6. Also see Ketubot 13:11 in the Mishna.”…..

http://www.answers.com/topic/cappadocia

[Seeker]

Isa 10:1 Woe unto them that decree unrighteous decrees, and that write grievousness which they have prescribed;
Isa 10:2 To turn aside the needy from judgment, and to take away the right from the poor of my people, that widows may be their prey, and that they may rob the fatherless!
Isa 10:3 And what will ye do in the day of visitation, and in the desolation which shall come from far? to whom will ye flee for help? and where will ye leave your glory?
Isa 10:4 Without me they shall bow down under the prisoners, and they shall fall under the slain. For all this his anger is not turned away, but his hand is stretched out still.
Isa 10:5 O Assyrian, the rod of mine anger, and the staff in their hand is mine indignation.
Isa 10:6 I will send him against an hypocritical nation, and against the people of my wrath will I give him a charge, to take the spoil, and to take the prey, and to tread them down like the mire of the streets.
Isa 10:7 Howbeit he meaneth not so, neither doth his heart think so; but it is in his heart to destroy and cut off nations not a few.
Isa 10:8 For he saith, Are not my princes altogether kings?
Isa 10:9 Is not Calno as Carchemish? is not Hamath as Arpad? is not Samaria as Damascus?
Isa 10:10 As my hand hath found the kingdoms of the idols, and whose graven images did excel them of Jerusalem and of Samaria;
Isa 10:11 Shall I not, as I have done unto Samaria and her idols, so do to Jerusalem and her idols?
Isa 10:12 Wherefore it shall come to pass, that when the Lord hath performed his whole work upon mount Zion and on Jerusalem, I will punish the fruit of the stout heart of the king of Assyria, and the glory of his high looks.
Isa 10:13 For he saith, By the strength of my hand I have done it, and by my wisdom; for I am prudent: and I have removed the bounds of the people, and have robbed their treasures, and I have put down the inhabitants like a valiant man:
Isa 10:14 And my hand hath found as a nest the riches of the people: and as one gathereth eggs that are left, have I gathered all the earth; and there was none that moved the wing, or opened the mouth, or peeped.
Isa 10:15 Shall the axe boast itself against him that heweth therewith? or shall the saw magnify itself against him that shaketh it? as if the rod should shake itself against them that lift it up, or as if the staff should lift up itself, as if it were no wood.
Isa 10:16 Therefore shall the Lord, the Lord of hosts, send among his fat ones leanness; and under his glory he shall kindle a burning like the burning of a fire.
Isa 10:17 And the light of Israel shall be for a fire, and his Holy One for a flame: and it shall burn and devour his thorns and his briers in one day;
Isa 10:18 And shall consume the glory of his forest, and of his fruitful field, both soul and body: and they shall be as when a standardbearer fainteth.
Isa 10:19 And the rest of the trees of his forest shall be few, that a child may write them.
Isa 10:20 And it shall come to pass in that day, that the remnant of Israel, and such as are escaped of the house of Jacob, shall no more again stay upon him that smote them; but shall stay upon the LORD, the Holy One of Israel, in truth.
Isa 10:21 The remnant shall return, even the remnant of Jacob, unto the mighty God.
Isa 10:22 For though thy people Israel be as the sand of the sea, yet a remnant of them shall return: the consumption decreed shall overflow with righteousness.
Isa 10:23 For the Lord GOD of hosts shall make a consumption, even determined, in the midst of all the land.
Isa 10:24 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD of hosts, O my people that dwellest in Zion, be not afraid of the Assyrian: he shall smite thee with a rod, and shall lift up his staff against thee, after the manner of Egypt.
Isa 10:25 For yet a very little while, and the indignation shall cease, and mine anger in their destruction.
Isa 10:26 And the LORD of hosts shall stir up a scourge for him according to the slaughter of Midian at the rock of Oreb: and as his rod was upon the sea, so shall he lift it up after the manner of Egypt.
Isa 10:27 And it shall come to pass in that day, that his burden shall be taken away from off thy shoulder, and his yoke from off thy neck, and the yoke shall be destroyed because of the anointing.
Isa 10:28 He is come to Aiath, he is passed to Migron; at Michmash he hath laid up his carriages:
Isa 10:29 They are gone over the passage: they have taken up their lodging at Geba; Ramah is afraid; Gibeah of Saul is fled.
Isa 10:30 Lift up thy voice, O daughter of Gallim: cause it to be heard unto Laish, O poor Anathoth.
Isa 10:31 Madmenah is removed; the inhabitants of Gebim gather themselves to flee.
Isa 10:32 As yet shall he remain at Nob that day: he shall shake his hand against the mount of the daughter of Zion, the hill of Jerusalem.
Isa 10:33 Behold, the Lord, the LORD of hosts, shall lop the bough with terror: and the high ones of stature shall be hewn down, and the haughty shall be humbled.
Isa 10:34 And he shall cut down the thickets of the forest with iron, and Lebanon shall fall by a mighty one.

[Seeker]

Pergamon or Pergamum (Greek: Πέργαμος, modern day Bergama in Turkey, 39°7′N 27°11′E) was an ancient Greek city, in Mysia, northwestern Anatolia, 16 miles from the Aegean Sea, located on a promontory on the north side of the river Caicus (modern day Bakırçay), that became an important kingdom during the Hellenistic period, under the Attalid dynasty, 282–129 BC. The Attalid kingdom was the rump state left after the collapse of the Lysimachian Empire."...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pergamos

Rev 2:12 And to the angel of the church in Pergamos write; These things saith he which hath the sharp sword with two edges;
Rev 2:13 I know thy works, and where thou dwellest, even where Satan's seat is: and thou holdest fast my name, and hast not denied my faith, even in those days wherein Antipas was my faithful martyr, who was slain among you, where Satan dwelleth.

[Seeker]

The city has had many names through its history and according to the culture, language and religion of its rulers. Byzantium, Constantinople and Stamboul are examples that may still be found in active use. The etymology of the names and an extended list of old names can be found under Names of Istanbul. It has also been nicknamed "The City on Seven Hills" because the historic peninsula (the oldest part of the city) was built on seven hills, also represented with seven mosques, one at the top of each hill.”……

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Istanbul

Rev 17:3 So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns.

Rev 13:1 And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy.

Rev 17:9 And here is the mind which hath wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains, on which the woman sitteth.

Rev 17:18 And the woman which thou sawest is that great city, which reigneth over the kings of the earth.

[Seeker]

Turk PM asserts right to intervene in Iraq, raps US

ANKARA, Jan 12 (Reuters) - Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan on Friday reaffirmed Turkey's right to send troops into Iraq to crush Kurdish rebels there and chided U.S. officials for questioning it.

"The Turkish Republic will do whatever is necessary to combat the terrorists when the time comes, but it will not announce its plans in advance," Erdogan told a news conference after a meeting of his ruling AK Party.

"We say we are ready to take concrete steps with the Iraqi government and we also say these steps must be taken now."

In sharp language underscoring Turkish anxiety about the chaos in Iraq, Erdogan said it was wrong for Washington -- "our supposed strategic ally" -- to tell Turkey, with its historic and cultural ties in the region, to stay out of Iraq.

"We have a 350 km border with Iraq. We have historic relations ... the United States is 10,000 km away from Iraq, and yet is it not intervening in Iraq's internal affairs?" he said.

Turkish media say Erdogan has been irked by comments attributed to Washington's envoy to Baghdad, Zalmay Khalilzad, warning third countries not to interfere in Iraqi affairs."......

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L12896544.htm

[Seeker]

TURKEY: EGYPTIAN FOREIGN MINISTER VISITS ANKARA

Istanbul, 11 Jan. (AKI) - Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit began a two-day visit to Turkey on Thursday. Talks between Gheit and his Turkish counterpart Abdullah Gul will centre on bilateral issues as well as regional and international matters, including Iraq, the Middle East and the Israeli-Palestinian dispute, Turkish Foreign Ministry sources said. Gheit's visit to Turkey comes after last week's summit between Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, aimed at re-launching the stalled Middle East peace process.".....

....."Egypt and Turkey are percieved as ‘natural rivals’ in Middle East according to Ceyda Karan, columnist and chief editor of the foreign desk at the Turkish daily Radikal.

“Both countries aim to become regional powers. Egypt and Turkey are also highly dependent to US policies so they also compete to become a ‘better ally’ to Washington. But in this competition Egypt seems to win since Cairo always gets more US aid than Turkey, - of course the biggest portion goes to Israel," Karan told Adnkronos International (AKI)."...

adnki.com

[Seeker]

USA and Turkey: Strategic partners?

Prime Minister Erdoğan delivered yet another stinging rebuke to the US regarding their actions in Iraq. “We’re supposed to be associates with the US, but it seems we are expected to lend a helping hand in difficult times while they will not do the same for us. They claim to share our troubles, but when it comes to taking action, what is said remains words”, Erdoğan said.".......

http://www.hurriyet.com.tr/english/5772277.asp?gid=74

[Exit40]

Report: Turkey mediated secret meetings between Israel and Syria
Wednesday, January 17, 2007

Turkey mediated secret talks between Syria and Israel, while senior Israeli officials deny that government sanctioned talks

ISTANBUL - TDN with wire dispatches


Turkey, after allegedly hosting meetings between the Spanish government and Basque separatist group ETA, has also mediated secret meetings between Syria and Israel that focused on a peace deal between the two countries, according to an Israeli daily.

Israeli and Syrian representatives held nearly two years of secret negotiations, coming up with a framework for a peace deal, before war erupted in Lebanon last summer, Haaretz reported yesterday. A series of meetings were held without even the knowledge of many senior Israeli officials.

Request from Erdoğan:

The Israeli daily reported that Syrian President Bashar Assad initiated the meetings and that Turkish mediators assisted the first contact between the two sides. The Turkish involvement ended in the summer of 2004 when an unidentified European took over as the leading go-between. Geoffrey Aronson, an American from the Washington-based Foundation for Middle East Peace, was also brought into the talks, it added.

The Turkish mediation came after a request for assistance made by Syrian President Bashar Assad to Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.

According to the report, the two sides reached a series of understandings that included a full Israeli withdrawal from the Golan Heights – captured from Syria in the 1967 Six-Day War – and an end to Syrian support for anti-Israel militant groups.

The report did not identify its sources, and David Baker, a spokesman for Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, said the government was “unaware of any such meetings.” A Syrian Foreign Ministry official dismissed the report as “absolutely baseless,” reported The Associated Press.

However, another Israeli government official, speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed that unofficial talks took place but said they had not been sanctioned by the government...........

url=http://www.turkishdailynews.com.tr/article.php?enewsid=64137]Continued[/url]

God Bless

David

[Seeker]

Turkey, Ukraine sign protocol on Operation Black Sea Harmony

Turkish and Ukrainian naval forces signed a protocol on Wednesday to exchange information and promote cooperation within the scope of Operation Black Sea Harmony, Turkey's semi-official Anatolia news agency reported.

The protocol, signed by naval commanders of the two countries, will be enforced as domestic legal processes in both countries are completed, the Turkish Foreign Ministry said in a statement, quoted by Anatolia.

"The Operation Black Sea Harmony is being carried out in full coordination with the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). The other Black Sea littoral states have also been called to join the operation," the statement said.

The signing came during a two-day state visit to Turkey by Ukrainian Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych who arrived here earlier in the day.

The Operation Black Sea Harmony, which was launched by Turkey in March 2004, aims to deter terrorism, eliminate any threats and risks in the Black Sea, and cooperate with the NATO-led Operation Active Endeavor in the Mediterranean.

Source: Xinhua

http://english.people.com.cn/200701/18/eng20070118_342264.html

[Seeker]

Speaker of the Grand National Assembly of the Republic of Turkey visits Sudan

..."He is to address the session of the National Assembly on Tuesday and the two sides are to hold joint session of talks. Al-Tahir affirmed the deeply-rooted relations between Sudan and Turkey in all spheres, commending Ankara's contributions to various investment projects in Sudan. He added that the visit of his Turkish counterpart would contribute to boosting the relations between the two countries in all fields, especially in the parliamentary domain."

http://www.smc.sd/en/artopic.asp?artID=23597&aCK=EA

[Exit40]

*** This could be significant *** D

EU court clears way for PKK terror-list challenge

1/18/2007 Reuters - By Michele Sinner
LUXEMBOURG - The European Union's top court ruled on Thursday that the brother of jailed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) leader Abdullah Ocalan had the right to fight the inclusion of the group on the EU's terrorist list.

This was the second legal success in weeks for a group challenging the EU terrorist list. A lower court recently annulled an EU decision freezing the funds of an exiled Iranian opposition group, the People's Mujahideen.

The European Court of Justice ruled a lower court was wrong in 2005 to dismiss a lawsuit by Osman Ocalan seeking to have the PKK removed from the list requiring EU states to freeze an organisation's assets.

It ordered the Court of First Instance, the EU's second most senior court, to re-examine the case.

"The Court of First Instance wrongly deduced from examination of Mr Ocalan's statements that the PKK no longer existed and could thus no longer be represented by him," the higher court ruling said.

"The Court of Justice concluded that Mr Ocalan is acting validly on behalf of the PKK and can also instruct lawyers to represent it."

The PKK case is politically sensitive because Turkish nationalists accuse Brussels of promoting Kurdish separatism by insisting on cultural rights such as broadcasting and schooling in the Kurdish language as conditions for EU membership.

The Turkish government blames the PKK for more than 30,000 deaths since the group launched an armed struggle for a Kurdish homeland in southeast Turkey in 1984. Attacks have increased since the PKK called off a unilateral ceasefire in 2004.

The United States, like the European Union, blacklists the PKK as a terrorist organisation.

After the ruling in the Iranian case last month, the EU Council's Secretariat, representing member states, said it would consider appealing on points of law to the higher European Court of Justice.

It played down the implications, saying the court had not annulled the regulation establishing the terrorism list, or other persons or entities named on it.

The Dutch office of the Al Aqsa Foundation, a group with alleged ties to the Palestinian militant group Hamas, is also challenging inclusion on the terrorist list.

It argues, like The People's Mujahideen, that EU member states erred in not giving the reasons for their decision, depriving the group of a chance to defend itself.

http://www.kurdmedia.com/news.asp?id=13909

God Bless

David

[Seeker]

Hi David,

Yes that would be the final straw I would say. If they do this Turkey will probably implement their solution. No Kurds left no homeland...I am sure Iran would be eager to follow right behind Turkeys lead in this. They have already made preparations for a joint operation against the Kurds. They almost have to strategically.

If it were either Turkey or Iran alone the Kurds would just move through the mountains out of reach across the border of the one not attacking. Turkey and Iran control the high ground on their sides of the border of Iraq. To successfully remove the Kurds they would need to drive them out of the mountains on the Iraq side at the same time. Closing escape routes by moving as a wave together sweeping the mountains and pushing the Kurds into open territory in Iraq.

They could stop there and see whether the US would then act against the Kurds. If the US did nothing and allowed the Kurds to melt into the population that would show where the US really stands. Turkey strongly suspects that the US is actually aiding the PKK. If the EU takes them off the terrorist list might the US follow? This would send an unmistakable signal for Turkey to turn east and prepare to confront the west in a clash of civilizations.

This would galvanize the ~1.5 billion muslims in an all out jihad I fear. We know Turkey and Iran are allies in the Gog war. I think maybe the PKK could be significant if the west openly supports the PKK. Definitely interesting info. Thanks David.

Peace,
Seeker

[Downpour]

Prominent Armenian-origin journalist Dink assassinated

The New Anatolian / Ankara
19 January 2007

Armenian-origin Turkish journalist Hrant Dink, well known in Turkey and abroad for having to defend his right to free expression in court, was killed yesterday by an unknown gunman.

Link

[Seeker]

We must never forget Turkey's 'first solution'

Jasper Gerard
Sunday January 21, 2007
The Observer

..."Turkey still doesn't acknowledge Armenia. Its Prime Minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, condemns the murder, but it was he who outlawed so-called attacks on the state. He has also stepped up nationalistic and Islamic tub-thumping, so while his condolences seem sincere, they are about as valuable as a discourse on multiculturalism from Jade Goody. And this is the guy with whom Tony Blair wants to chew over European integration.

Istanbul dazzles. On frequent trips, I see the clash of civilisations fought, not in mosques but in Moschino: the devil might wear Prada, but so now do many of Allah's followers. Materialism, not spiritualism, will win this war. Mama might be shrouded in black, but her daughter might be a short-skirted babe hopping into her boyfriend's open-top Mini.

Most Turks want progress, and we should help them. America, with a Democrat Congress, should shortly join France in recognising the genocide.

Winston Churchill once called it a holocaust. What a paradox that just as Europe starts to consider outlawing Holocaust denial, Turkey outlaws holocaust admittance. Hitler famously reckoned he would get away with his Final Solution after studying Turkey's first solution. 'Who,' he asked 'remembers the Armenians?' The torchlit procession of all nationalities weaving tearfully through Istanbul suggests that, finally, the entire world remembers."...

http://observer.guardian.co.uk/comment/story/0,,1995358,00.html

[Seeker]

Iran-Turkey border a model for the world: official

Iran-Turkey-Peace
The governor general of the Turkish province of Van, Mehmet Niyazi Tanilir, here Saturday said that the joint border of Iran and Turkey was the best example to the world of a peaceful border.


His remarks were made while speaking to reporters in the northwestern Iranian city of Khoy.

Tanilir said Iran and Turkey will be holding a festival of peace and friendship to celebrate 400 years of good neighborliness and peaceful co-existence.

He added that no specific event took place in the two countries' joints borders during the past four years and said peoples in the border regions live side by side in peace and friendship for which they should be highly credited.

Border peoples and nations of the two friends and neighboring states have shown the best kind of neighborly relations in the world, he noted.

The Turkish official said promoting cultural exchanges among artistic groups, tradesmen and sportsmen will be the main objective of the festival that will be held by the Turkish government in Van.".....

http://www.irna.com/en/news/view/line-20/0701202198165446.htm

[Seeker]

Islam converts change face of Europe

By ETGAR LEFKOVITS

As many as 100,000 French and British citizens have converted to Islam over the last decade, according to a new book by an Israeli historian.

The figures cited by Hebrew University Prof. Raphael Israeli in his upcoming book The Third Islamic Invasion of Europe are representative of the fast-changing face of Europe, which the Islamic history professor says is in danger of becoming "Eurabia" within half a century.

He noted that about 30 million Muslims currently live in Europe, out of a total population of 380 million., adding that with a high Muslim birthrate in Europe, the number of Muslims living in the continent is likely to double within 25 years.

Israeli also cited massive immigration and Turkey's future inclusion in the EU as the primary reasons why the face of Europe will be indelibly changed within a generation.

European concerns over a fast-growing Muslim population is at the center of opposition to Turkey's entry into the EU, he said, as the inclusion of Turkey into the EU will catapult the number of Muslims to 100 million out of a total population of 450 million.

"The sheer weight of demography will produce a situation where no Frenchman or Dutchman could be elected to parliament without the support of the Muslim minority," he said Monday in an interview with The Jerusalem Post. ".....

Jerusalem Post

[Exit40]

Politics according to the Turkish State’s mentality


Monday, January 22, 2007

KurdishMedia.com - By Salam Zandi

In a speech in front of his Islamic party, January 16, the Turkish prime minister, referring to Iraq, said: Turkey has historical and cultural bonds and has 350 kilometers long borders with Iraq, we can not sit on grandstand seats and all these actions are going on in neighboring Iraq.

We are saying this openly. The prime minister Receb Tayib Erdogan emphasizes in his speech on the unity of Iraq, distribution of Iraq’s resources on all Iraqis without differences. He also says; in Iraq one single ethnic or religious group should not dominate and rule other religious or ethnic groups. The prime minister refers to the city of Kirkuk (a city with mixed ethnic population, and geographically belongs to the autonomous Kurdish region in the northern Iraq). He says; Kirkuk can not belong to one ethnic group, Kirkuk belongs to all Iraqis.

What is interesting in this speech is that a prime minister of a sovereign state dictating his wishes on another sovereign state, namely Iraq. Iraq has its newly ratified national constitution that Iraqis in a free election, first in the country’s history, voted on. In this constitution, even the issue of Kirkuk has been codified and a timetable and a schedule have been set to normalize the life in the city after all atrocities caused by Saddam Huseins regime, especially to the Kurdish population of the city. The 140 + in the Iraqi national constitution, that all Iraqis agreed on, is to deal with the issue of Kirkuk. This is an internal issue and only the Iraqis have the right to find a suitable solution that satisfies all Iraqis and not other nations.

It is extremely unusual for a democratic country to dictate its wish on a democratically elected government in another country. If the reason is because of “the historical and cultural bonds” between these two countries, so, and according to the same logic, Iraq has reciprocal right to express its wishes regarding Turkey. For instance, Iraqis would like to see a Turkey where even Kurds (more than 15 millions), Arabs, Armenians, and other Christian groups have the right to speak and study their own languages and explore their own history and culture. In Iraq and particularly in Kirkuk, e.g. Turkomens, Arabs, Assyrians and Kurds have their own schools and have the right to publish books and newspapers in their own languages.

Iraqis would very much like that Turkey distribute its natural resources on all parts of the country, including the Southeastern part with dominantly Kurdish population. Iraq would like to see equal treatments of all citizens in Turkey regardless their ethnic or religious identity. Iraq will be happy to see a peaceful solution to the Kurdish problem in Turkey by recognizing the existence of Kurds as a distinctive ethnic group with history longer than Turks in the Middle East.

Turkey should reconcile with its own history and its own people. Turkey should first solve its own structural social and political problems before giving peaces of advice to others.

Turkey is a multinational and multi-confessional nation; it is unfair, undemocratic and unacceptable to repress social, cultural and linguistic diversities in the country.

http://www.kurdmedia.com/articles.asp?id=13926

God Bless

David

[Exit40]

Kurds Are Debating Turkey, Kirkuk Issue
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Posted GMT 1-25-2007 14:48:58
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
It is no secret that Kirkuk has emerged as a very hot issue in Turkish politics, being debated in Turkish Parliament in a session open to the public and then in a session behind closed doors …

Turkish leaders say Ankara will not accept a fait accompli on Kirkuk and that they will not tolerate any solution for the province that does not safeguard the rights of the Turkmens living in the city.

The Kurds, meanwhile regard Turkey's statements on Kirkuk as a direct interference in the internal of Iraq. They say the new Iraqi Constitution has clearly defined how the Kirkuk issue will be resolved: There will be a referendum by the end of the year when the people of Kirkuk will decide whether they want to become a part of the Kurdistan federal set up.

Of course it is questionable whether the conditions will be ripe for such a referendum. It is no secret that violence has gripped Kirkuk and it may not be possible to secure an environment for a healthy ballot but it is no secret that sooner or later there will be a referendum and it will not be a great surprise if the province votes to join the Kurdish north.

However, it is a must that while the province becomes a part of the Kurdistan region of Iraq the Kurds agree to set up an autonomous administration in Kirkuk that will safeguard the rights of the Turkmens, the Arabs and the Christians. It should also allow power sharing especially with the Turkmens and Arabs.

We are aware that the Kurdish leaders do not object to such an arrangement.

We see that the Kurdish leaders were rather positive in their statements at a special regional parliamentary session on Wednesday in Erbil when both Prime Minister Necirvan Barzani and speaker Adnan Mufti said they have no intention of denying the rights of the Turkmens in Kirkuk.

Barzani stressed Turkey had always helped the Kurds in times of trouble in the Saddam days and stressed that if the Kurds had any intention of a fait accompli in Kirkuk they would have done this in the early days of Saddam's downfall when there was confusion and the situation was ripe.

He also said Kurds have respect for Turkmens. "They have their own schools and even our children (Kurds) attend these schools," he stressed.

The Kurdish leaders also stressed that they themselves knew well what persecution was and had no intention of doing this to the Turkmens.

Mufti also said Saddam always denied the existence of Turkmens in Kirkuk but lamented that at that time Turkey did nothing to oppose this.

The Kurds deny they are bringing their people into Kirkuk and say they want an independent group of Turks to visit Kirkuk and make a report on the realities …

These are issues that should be openly and sincerely discussed between Turkish and Iraqi Kurdish leaders. It is time we stopped accusations and counter accusations in a war of words and started seeking ways for genuine dialogue.

We simply cannot let this issue and the problems surrounding the terrorist Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) pollute our relations with the Iraqi Kurds while the vital interests of Turkey are being harmed.

By Ilnur Cevik
www.thenewanatolian.com

http://www.aina.org/news/20070125084858.htm

God Bless

David

[Seeker]

Hey David and NJ it's all yours my time is done here. Things to watch will be friction developing between Egypt and Turkey. Africa is starting to join with Turkey also at this time. Iran and Turkey are already allies the rest will soon fall into place. Take care my friends.

Later,
Seeker

[Exit40]

Hey Seeker, what's going on, Brother ? PM me if you would like to talk.

God Bless You

David

[Seeker]

Hi David,

It is just that I have very little time as it is. I feel I have said all I can here at this message board. Time to move on to other places more receptive to the possibility of Islam producing the AC. I mean why kick and fight every post I make when I could be discussing this stuff with others of like mind and actually making some progress with the rest of the puzzle. Time is short I fear so best make the best use of it to try to help as many as I can. I have written everything I have to say here so time to move on. I'll pm you with a way to keep in touch

Peace,
Seeker

[Exit40]

Turkey to be invited to Iraqi neighbors meeting
Monday, January 29, 2007

Turkey to be invited to Iraqi neighbors meeting:

ANK - Turkish Daily News

The foreign ministers of Turkey, Iran, Syria and the Gulf countries are to be invited to a meeting of Iraq's neighbors, reported the Anatolia news agency yesterday, citing a statement made by Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari to The Associated Press. Zebari said the meeting would show that neighboring countries supported the Iraqis and the Iraqi government.

http://www.turkishdailynews.com.tr/arti ... wsid=64982

God Bless

David

[Exit40]

Iraqi Kurds Betray US
Jan 30, 2007
Scott Sullivan - Persian Journal


As predicted earlier by Iran-Watch.com, the Iraqi Kurds are loyal to Iran, not to the US. This much is clear by recent Kurdish actions blocking Iraq's national petroleum law, imposing a Kurdish trade embargo on Turkey, defying US policy on Kirkuk, and hosting Iranian-sponsored terrorists that attack US targets in Iraq.


Kurdish opposition to Iraq's national petroleum law, without which Iraq's Sunnis cannot be brought aboard a political settlement, has been underway for months. Iran also is opposed to the Iraqi petroleum law. The US has not objected to Kurdish or Iranian opposition to the petroleum law. This signals US abandonment of the single most important issue facing Iraq. Prim Minister Maliki's failure to pass the petroleum law will accelerate the breakup of Iraq and Iran's drift into full scale civil war.

The Iraqi Kurds have unilaterally declared a trade embargo on certain agricultural products to Turkey, a close US ally and the only Islamic member of NATO. In brief, the Iraqi Kurds are declaring war on Turkey and want to drag in the US on their side. The Iraqi Kurds imposed this trade embargo after Turkey informed the Kurds that Turkey would deal only with Baghdad on Iraqi oil-related issues.

Finally, the official representatives of the Kurdish regional government testified today before the Senate foreign Relations Committee that the Kurds would soon annex Kirkuk, and that Kurdish action on the national petroleum law would be indefinitely postponed.

In other words, just as the US seems to be drifting into a major confrontation with Iran, the Iraqi Kurds seem to be abandoning ship by joining Iran against the US. Is the Bush administration getting this message?

President Bush now has an acute problem with the Kurds, who are taking positions diametrically opposed to US policy. If the US approved of these Kurdish policy shifts in advance, the Bush administration has some explaining to do. If the US did not know in advance, the Bush administration also has some explaining to do.

What does President Bush intend to do about Kurdish defiance of the US and Turkey, and the Kurdish alliance with Iran? What does Ambassador Khalilzad have to say?

http://www.iranian.ws/iran_news/publish ... 0417.shtml

God Bless

david

[Exit40]

Turkey to lobby U.S. over Kurd rebels in Iraq

By Paul de Bendern
Reuters
Sunday, February 4, 2007; 5:17 AM

ANKARA (Reuters) - Turkey's Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan, facing pressure on security issues ahead of elections, will send his foreign minister to Washington next week to lobby for a crackdown on Kurdish rebels in northern Iraq.

Ankara has repeatedly threatened to send troops into northern Iraq to crush Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) rebels if U.S. and Iraqi government forces fail to take action, though most analysts dismiss the threats as rhetoric to impress voters.

There are presidential and parliamentary polls in 2007.

Against a backdrop of rising nationalism in Turkey, partly due to disillusionment with the European Union accession process, the ruling centre-right AK Party says it cannot stand idly by if PKK attacks resume as expected in the spring.

Ankara says some 4,000 PKK rebels are based in northern Iraq from where they stage attacks into Turkish territory.

Since the PKK launched its armed campaign for a Kurdish homeland in 1984 more than 30,000 people have been killed, mostly in Turkey's predominantly Kurdish southeast.

Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul will hold talks with Vice President Dick Cheney, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and National Security Adviser Stephen Hadley.

"Gul will seek U.S. support in cracking down on PKK terrorists. It's a major security concern for us," said a Turkish diplomat.

"We can't just sit on the sidelines when our boys are being killed. We have been promised action but seen few results."

IMPORTANT ALLY

Relations between NATO member Turkey and the U.S. have improved after a low in 2003 when Ankara denied U.S. forces permission to use its territory for the Iraqi invasion, but Gul will still face a tough time.

While the Americans value Turkey as an ally -- the country's neighbors include Iraq, Iran and Syria -- and consider the PKK a terrorist organization, Washington may be wary of a crackdown in northern Iraq because the area is a rare haven of relative calm in a country ablaze.

Turkish media have said the government may propose a compromise deal where Turkish, U.S. and Iraqi forces jointly carry out attacks against PKK targets.

Armed forces chief General Yasar Buyukanit will follow in Gul's footsteps a week later for talks with Cheney, Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Hadley -- also focused on Iraq.

"This will be a more important meeting as the U.S. military has no love lost for Turkey," said CNN Turk diplomatic editor Semih Idiz.

"The Turkish military is concerned that the Americans are in cahoots with the (Iraqi) Kurds and in contact with the PKK."

Talks will also probably touch on Kirkuk, an ethnically-mixed northern Iraqi city which has vast oil reserves.

Kurds want to annex the city for their capital and Iraq's new constitution mandates a local referendum on the issue later this year.

Turkey is worried that greater autonomy for the Kurdish-controlled area will threaten Turkey's own security and has said it wants the referendum postponed.

LINK

God Bless

David

[Exit40]

Turkey could emerge as a new threat in Iraq

2/5/2007 IPU - By Mohammed Salih
Turkey Could Emerge as a New Threat in Iraq Inter Press Service by Mohammed Salih

ARBIL - Growing confrontation between Iraqi Kurds and neighboring Turkey presents a new threat to a fragile calm in the north.

Tensions have run high between Iraqi Kurds and Turkey since the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in 2003, but they were further exacerbated last month when Turkish Prime Minister Recep Teyyip Erdogan threatened to send forces to northern Iraq.

The aim, Erdogan said, was to crack down on guerrillas of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) and to protect the rights of ethnic Turkomens in the oil-rich city Kirkuk.

"There are efforts to alter the demographic structure of Kirkuk. We cannot remain a bystander to such developments," Erdogan told members of his ruling Justice and Development Party Jan. 17.

Some Kurdish leaders fear a new war front could open up in Iraq's northern Kurdistan region, which has been by far the safest part of the war-torn country. They fear this could open the door for further intervention by other regional powers like Iran, Syria and Saudi Arabia.

While Turkey speaks of the PKK and Turkomens' rights in Iraq to justify any possible military invasion, some analysts speak of its other intentions.

"One clear reason for military invasion by Turkey would be their old ambition to re-annex Mosul 'Vilayet' (province) to its territory. They are still thinking in terms of the old Ottoman empire," Ata Qaradakhi, a political analyst from Sulaimaniya in Kurdistan told IPS.

Iraq's major northern provinces which were once a part of the Mosul Vilayet under the Ottoman empire were incorporated into the Iraqi state when it was founded in the early years of the 20th century by Britain.

"Turkish leaders are also worried over the growing influence and authority of the Kurdistan Regional Government in Iraq since the fall of Saddam, and fear it could inspire their own Kurdish population," Qaradakhi added.

Over the past few weeks, movements by Turkish troops on the border with Iraq are reported to have increased. Turkey has deployed around 240,000 troops on the border strip with Iraq, and has bombarded areas within northern Iraqi Kurdistan region several times over the past eight months.

In the 1990s, Turkish troops carried out cross-border operations in pursuit of PKK guerrillas based in Iraqi Kurdistan.

The Kurdistan regional parliament held a meeting last week to discuss increasing threats of a Turkish military invasion.

"It is true that we must be on alert, and careful, but shouldn't attach too much importance to threats by the Turkish parliament or other parties (in that country)," Prime Minister of the Kurdistan Regional Government Nechirvan Barzani told parliament.

"Under Iraq's current circumstances, neither Turkey nor any other
(regional) country can send troops to Iraq. Then the issue wouldn't be only Kurds, it would be the issue of violating the sovereignty of another state, that's Iraq."

Kurds count on the presence of U.S. troops as a bulwark against any regional threats.

But several Kurdish politicians sharply criticized the government of Shi'ite Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki for not reacting strongly enough to Turkish threats.

Turkey has called on Iraqis to change constitutional Article 140, which sets out a roadmap to bring normalcy to the disputed oil-rich city Kirkuk in the north. The city has large numbers of ethnic Arabs, Turkomens and Kurds. The Turkish demand, which seeks more for Turkomens in the city, has sparked angry reactions in Kurdish circles.

"Turkey must give others the rights which it gives to itself," Ghafour Makhmouri, a Kurdish lawmaker said during the parliament session.

"We have also the right to demand changes in Turkish constitution regarding the rights of millions of Kurds in Turkey, the same way that Turkey assumes the right to ask for the rights of Turkomens in Iraq."

Kurds hope that once Article 140 is executed, they can vote to bring the province within their autonomous region.

Meanwhile the Turkish government stopped fuel trucks from crossing its border to Iraq this week. It said it will not accept the Kurdistan Regional Government as a legitimate partner for sending fuel to Iraq, and would sign deals only with the Iraqi central government.

But many believe Turkey will not go so far as to invade Iraq. Apart from other things, that would thwart Turkish hopes of joining the European Union, Qaradakhi said.

"Kurds in Iraq can also create problems for Turkey just as much as Turkey can do. They can use the Kurdish card in Turkey to create unrest there, and Turkey knows that that wouldn't serve Turkish interests."

http://www.kurdmedia.com/news.asp?id=14013

God Bless

David

[Exit40]

Solving the Kurdish Problem
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Posted GMT 2-6-2007 15:6:22
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At their meeting today in Washington, Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul will give Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice a clearer picture of a country in total disarray, confusion and uncertain of its next steps. This is a decisive year for Turkey, one in which its citizens will determine whether it will remain aligned with the West or take another path.

Mr. Gul represents a country in a very difficult position. Although the recently publicized National Intelligence Estimate (NIE) predicts a possible Turkish military incursion into Iraq, Turkey is trying desperately not to be pulled into the war. While it maneuvers around the thorny issues, Turkey is trying to achieve good standing with as many countries as possible, even as Turks perceive that the Western bloc is pushing them away.

Under his "new way forward," President Bush has given the Iraqi government responsibility for dealing with attacks in Turkey by the separatist Kurdish terrorists, or PKK. The NIE makes it clear that the Iraqi security forces are not capable of providing security. It also says that in the event of an American withdrawal, the "[I]raqi Security Force would be unlikely to survive as a non-sectarian national institution." Therefore, transferring security responsibility to the Iraqis means more terrorist attacks for Turkey.

For over a decade now, U.S. policy on Kurds largely excludes their nationality as Iraqis or Turks and emphasizes only their ethnicity. Kurds seek a homeland, but one made up of land carved from Iraq, Turkey, Iran and Syria. Although "the solution is not only military," says Matt Bryza, assistant secretary of state, no one could argue that U.S. policy is a solution to this historical dilemma.

John Bolton, the former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, said recently that "there may well come a day when Iraq divides along sectarian lines and that may not necessarily be a disastrous outcome." When I mentioned that possibility to Imad Moustapha, Syria's ambassador to the United States, he said, "God forbid. As far as we are concerned, that will be catastrophic. It is [in] our national interest to preserve the territorial integrity of Iraq and not to allow any group in Iraq to dominate it or defeat it, because the defeated group will not give up. It might be defeated in the battle, but it goes to other ways of fighting back. And this is a vicious cycle of vengeance and violence in Iraq that will never end." Asked whether he agrees with the Turkish assessment that a Kirkuk referendum would increase the sectarian and ethnic violence and make it more difficult to protect Iraq's territorial integrity, he said, "While we don't approach the issue of Kirkuk the same way as Turks do, the results are almost the same... Wherever we look at Iraq, we are afraid that policies of dividing Iraq into autonomous regions and federal regions might end up leading to the disintegration of Iraq."

Meanwhile, David Satterfield, the State Department's senior coordinator on Iraq, told at a panel Friday at Woodrow Wilson Center, "We believe the issues as sensitive as Kirkuk must come in a way that contributes to national reconciliation and unity and in terms not be divisive." This is a marked change from two weeks ago, when Zalmay Khalilzad, the U.S. ambassador to Baghdad, warned neighboring countries that they should stay out of the Kirkuk referendum. Mr. Satterfield, however, said, "On the procedures to be followed, Iraqi sovereign national procedures are to be followed. This does not mean that friends of Iraq, including Turkey and the U.S., cannot express views. They can and we do."

The complexity of taking responsibility in Iraq and the way it is being used in politics -- for the approaching 2008 presidential election -- will likely cause more bad decisions. Although it could be disturbing to admit, the fact is that the Iraqi government did not invite U.S. troops, nor the U.N., nor the Arab League, nor the regional countries like Turkey, into their country's business. Yet they must bear the responsibility of cleaning up the battlefield. While finger-pointing is all too easy, the United States should accept full responsibility of the preventative war in Iraq.

Turkey, the only NATO ally that borders Iraq, Iran and Syria, is facing a historical challenge. "We understand... how the Kurds are feeling emboldened by the autonomous Kurdistan of Iraq and we see how Turkey is not very comfortable -- although it is not opposing the emergence of an almost independent Kurdistan of Iraq," Mr. Moustapha said. Asked if Turkey should cross the border, he said, "This is a bilateral issue between Iraq and Turkey."

Such a perspective puts Turkey in an even more difficult position. Syria is enormously influential in Iraq; 17 out of 25 members of the Iraqi Governing Council used to live in Syria, and Iraqi delegations are almost a daily phenomenon in Damascus. Syria clearly has much more power on Iraq than Turkey, simply because they have more intimate access to the people in charge.

Turkey has no alternative but to work on its relationship with Damascus. The United States, in the meantime, has to decide how it wants to solve the Kurdish issue with Turkey.

By Tulin Daloglu
Washington Times

http://www.aina.org/news/2007020690622.htm

God Bless

David

[Exit40]

US-Turkey relations set to worsen over Iraq and Armenian 'genocide'
By Guy Dinmore in Washington and Vincent Boland in Ankara

Published: February 9 2007 02:00 | Last updated: February 9 2007 02:00

Turkey's strained relationship with the Bush administration is likely to worsen after its foreign minister, Abdullah Gul, failed to make significant progress on Ankara's main objectives in Washington this week.

Disagreements, centred on Iraq and a resolution proposed in the US Congress that would officially recognise the mass killings of Ottoman Armenians as genocide, threaten to intensify anti-American sentiment in Turkey, while raising concerns in the US about a possible Turkish military intervention in northern Iraq.

Analysts suggest the disputes could undermine US efforts to enlist Turkey's support in isolating Iran, an issue that Dick Cheney, US vice-president, is believed to have raised.

Mr Gul's week-long visit to the US had three main aims: to get a firm US commitment to act against anti-Turkish PKK militants in northern Iraq; to postpone a referendum due this year on the status of Iraq's Kurdish-claimed and oil-rich city of Kirkuk; and to lobby against the Armenia resolution.

"Gul will not leave Washington a very happy man," said Bulent Aliriza, analyst with the CSIS think-tank. "Relations will take a hit."

Mr Gul told reporters that the proposed genocide resolution - which is backed by key lawmakers, including Nancy Pelosi, Democratic speaker of the House - posed a "real threat" to US-Turkey relations.

"It really is a nightmare for us and for you. It will overshadow and spoil everything between us," he warned.

Ms Pelosi signalled her position by not being available to meet Mr Gul.

The White House is also unhappy with the resolution, but it remains uncertain how far President George W. Bush will go to lobby against it.

Several countries, notably France, have already adopted a similar stance on recognising the killings of Christian Armenians by Ottoman troops as the empire collapsed in 1915. Armenians say it was genocide. Turkey denies this and says they, and hundreds of thousands of Muslim Turks, died as a result of civil war, displacement, disease and hunger.

Anxiety has been heightened by the murder in Istanbul on January 19 of Hrant Dink, a prominent Turkish-Armenian journalist. Mr Dink was well known among the Armenian diaspora in the US, especially in California, the home state of Ms Pelosi.

On Kirkuk, US officials say it is for the Iraqi government to decide whether to proceed with the referendum to decide its status.

LINK

God Bless

David

[Exit40]

Opportunity For Turks And Kurds?
Washington Post
February 12, 2007
Pg. 17

Opportunity For Turks And Kurds?

By Richard Holbrooke

IRBIL, Iraqi Kurdistan -- Whatever happens in Iraq, we must try to limit the terrible fallout from the war. The place to start should be with our indispensable NATO ally Turkey, the front-line state of the post-Cold War era, whose relations with the United States have deteriorated dramatically in the past six years.

The immediate issue is raids by Kurdish terrorists across Turkey's border with Iraq, which divides an area inhabited on both sides by Kurds who have long felt that they deserve their own country. Despite centuries of enmity, rapprochement is in the long-term interests of both Turkey and the Kurds of northern Iraq. But such an effort would be controversial and could be undertaken only with strong American encouragement.

First, some essential background from Irbil, the capital of Iraqi Kurdistan, which I am visiting after talks with Turkish leaders in Ankara. This peaceful city is disorienting: Am I in war-torn Iraq or booming Kurdistan? Will Irbil eventually become the capital (or part) of an independent Kurdistan? Or will this region become a battleground for another war, this one between Kurds and Turks?

You can call this place Kurdistan, as its citizens do, or northern Iraq, as the Turks do. But either way, the overwhelming majority (98 percent in a 2005 referendum) of its 4 million people do not want to remain part of Iraq. Who can blame them? Nothing here feels like the Middle East. The Iraqi national flag is banned; only the Kurdistan flag flies. And although the Kurds are sending some of their famously fierce warriors to Baghdad to support the Americans, they fear that Gen. David Petraeus's plan to turn the tide in Baghdad will not succeed.

Ever since a nation called Iraq was carved out of the debris of the Ottoman Empire by Winston Churchill and Gertrude Bell at the Cairo Conference of 1921, Turkey and Iran have opposed independence for the Kurds of northern Iraq because both fear that an independent Kurdistan on their borders would encourage existing separatist movements among their large Kurdish populations.

This symmetry of fears has led to semi-secret discussions and even some cooperation between our NATO ally and that charter member of the "axis of evil" on dealing with the PKK, a terrorist group that has conducted raids against both Turkey and Iran from bases just inside northern Iraq for many years. I would not rule out limited Turkish military action against some of those bases -- especially since Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan is under enormous political pressure to show strong nationalist credentials against hawkish rivals in an election year.

After years of mishandling relations with Turkey, last year the administration appointed retired Gen. Joe Ralston, the universally respected former NATO commander, as special envoy for the PKK problem. Ralston's intervention helped avoid a Turkish attack in Iraq last summer, and he is accelerating his efforts to get Irbil to rein in the PKK.

But there is a larger issue: the final status of Kirkuk, the multiethnic city that sits in the middle of a huge oil field and lies just outside the official boundaries of Iraqi Kurdistan. The new Iraqi constitution calls for a referendum this year on whether Kirkuk is to be incorporated into the Kurdistan region. The Turks -- who refer repeatedly to the dangers to the Turkmen, their ethnic cousins who live in Kirkuk -- have said that they will not accept such an event. Avoiding a full-blown crisis will require intense mediation by the United States; unfortunately, Ralston's current mandate does not include Kirkuk.

Despite their history, Turkey and Iraqi Kurdistan need each other. Kurdistan could become a buffer between Turkey and the chaos to the south, while Turkey could become the protector of a Kurdistan that, though still technically part of Iraq, is effectively cut loose from a Baghdad government that may no longer function. In addition, Turkey has a major economic opportunity in northern Iraq; already, more than 300 Turkish companies and substantial investment are a primary engine of Kurdish growth.

Rapprochement would require major undertakings by both sides. The legendary Kurdish leader who is now president of the Kurdish regional government, Massoud Barzani, needs to rein in the PKK and pledge not to interfere in Turkey's internal affairs. A compromise that took into account legitimate Turkish concerns would be necessary on Kirkuk; while this would be difficult, especially for the Turkish military, I believe it needs to be attempted, with strong American encouragement.

History and myth make a Turkish-Kurdish deal extremely difficult. It takes visionary leaders to alter the stream of history. Charles de Gaulle and Konrad Adenauer did it for France and Germany. Nelson Mandela did it in South Africa. But such people are very, very rare. Still, the crisis in Iraq requires Turks and Kurds to think of their common interest. Having just talked to the impressive leaders of both sides, I believe they understand that they face not just a crisis but an opportunity.

Richard Holbrooke, a former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, writes a monthly column for The Post.

LINK

God Bless

David

[Exit40]

Erdogan could become Holbrooke’s visionary leader

Friday, February 16, 2007

KurdishMedia.com - By Vladimir van Wilgenburg

Turkey's Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan (L) and Israel 's Prime Minister Ehud Olmert (Reuters)

Apparently Erdogan is following the advice of Richard Holbrooke. Steps could be taken to develop relations with regional the Kurdish government in northern Iraq, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Thursday. We should praise this move of Erdogan in the election time. It confirms the view that the AKP isn’t hostile to Kurds. Of course they make “nationalistic statements” to get cheers from the masses, like Barzani does. But the reality is that the AKP is a blessing for the Kurdish issue. This is confirmed by personal statements of Kurdish officials in the diaspora.

Earlier before Richard Holbrooke wrote in the Washington Post that: “Despite their history, Turkey and Iraqi Kurdistan need each other.” More US officials called for more cooperation, peaceful solutions and expressed their opposition against Turkish military intervention. Even the Turkish PKK-coordinator Edip Baser wants to talk with the KRG.

So our friend Erdogan wants to develop relations with the Regional Government of Kurdistan. Let’s hope Erdogan keeps his word, since the ulusalci leader Buyukanit gave a hostile message to the KRG in Iraqi Kurdistan. Although I am quite positive about Erdogan’s words, we shouldn’t forget Erdogan’s speech in Amed. What happened after his speech? I think this also might have to do with the influence of the military and the course of events (Unrest in Amed). The AKP pushes for reforms, but is not only checked by a parliament, but by the military as confirmed by a recent article of The New Anatolian.

One retired general said that Turkey has to be more realistic, since they are one of the creators of the safe-haven in “northern Iraq” and because the new US policy gives “Turkey a strategic vision and gives the Kurds a new strategic partnership. The deal also secures Turkey's and the Kurds' partnership and give the U.S. the chance to be present in the Middle East for at least 30 more years."

Buyukanit not all too bad

Buyukanit’s first opening speech wasn’t very bad though, he said that he wanted to “unite those who want to solve the Kurdish problem without violence.” Although that this took place, nothing changed. The Kurdish president Talabani asked the PKK to declare a ceasefire. We shouldn’t forget that the Turkish government asked Talabani to play a diplomatic role in this PKK-TSK conflict. But still the problem is ongoing. Some Kurdish politicians (PSK for instance) say the conflict benefits the army and that’s why they won’t want to solve it. “Would the army have so much power without the PKK?”, they ask.

“Nobody should dare to dream about dividing Turkey!” Buyukanit said in Washington. But DTP leader Ahmet Turk said even before pasha’s speech: Turkey’s Kurds don’t want a Kurdish state. Why don’t these people listen to each other.

Holbrooke?

And what about Richard Holbrooke? I don't totally agree with him about Ankara's legitimate concerns about Kerkuk. If Ankara was so concerned about Turkmen in Kerkuk, why didn’t Ankara help the Turkmen in the time of Saddam? Like Ilnur Cevik said before: Turkmen were killed then and it went even so far that Saddam’s regime declared that there were no Turkmen in Kerkuk! Guess what, nobody said a thing in Ankara.

We also shouldn’t forget the background of Richard Holbrooke. In the past he said that the NATO should finish of the PKK in Iraqi-Kurdistan, but now he opts for a diplomatic solution. The pro-PKK blogger Rasti isn’t all too positive about Holbrooke. Holbrooke did some “nasty” things in Indonesia and is also related to Ralston. But others praise Holbrooke’s role in the peace process in Bosnia.........................

http://www.kurdmedia.com/articles.asp?id=14070

God Bless

David

[Exit40]

Sales job falls to Turkey for new peace plan
Monday, February 19, 2007

Turkey gives support to Saudi Arabian-Pakistani initiative to form a Muslim bloc.

DUYGU GÜVENÇ
ANKARA - Turkish Daily New

Foreign Minister Abdullah Gül conveyed Turkey's support over the weekend for a new peace initiative, established by seven Muslim states, between Israelis and the Palestinians, apparently assuming the role of convincing Israel to join the project.

Gül, on a trip to Saudi Arabia, was said by diplomatic sources to have forwarded a message from Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's to Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz. The message was that the Turkish government would support the plan originally drafted by Saudi Arabia and Pakistan and is now supported by Jordan, Malaysia, Indonesia and Egypt.

The new “plan of seven” is surfacing parallel to the so-called “Quartet” of Middle East negotiators, which consists of the United States, Russia, the European Union and the United Nations. The Quartet has set the condition of recognition of Israel by the Hamas-led government of Palestinians for the lifting of crippling international sanctions. That stand stiffened over the weekend as U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and the Israeli prime minister repeated they would shun any peace deal that does not include a rejection of violence and acceptance of earlier peace agreements.

The new Turkish-supported plan envisions a comprehensive recognition of Israel by the seven nations in exchange for Israel's movement in coming to terms with the Palestinians. Currently, Turkey is the only nation among the seven that has full diplomatic relations with Israel.

The foreign ministers of the seven are expected to refine the new peace proposal later this month or early in March in Islamabad. This will set the stage for a full summit of heads of states regarding the proposal in March, according to Pakistani and Arab diplomats who spoke with the Turkish Daily News.

In Riyadh, Gül first met with his counterpart, Prince Saud Alfaisal, on Saturday and then proceeded with a two-hour meeting with King Abdullah. During the meeting, Naci Koru, the new Turkish Ambassador to Riyadh, showed his credentials [WHAT???? SHOWED HIS BADGE???] to King Abdullah. The king was said to have responded positively to Erdoğan and expressed the importance of Turkey convincing Israel to embrace the initiative.

Turkish diplomatic sources, commenting on Gül's surprise visit to Riyadh, indicated the new initiative is led by Saudi Arabia and Pakistan. Gül apparently made the decision to visit Saudi Arabia and offer support after a call on Friday night from King Abdullah seeking the meeting.

While the Arab and Pakistani diplomatic sources emphasized Turkey's support, Turkish diplomats approached the issue more cautiously. “We are trying to understand what is going on between Saudi Arabia and Pakistan first,” said one diplomat, speaking while Gül was still in Saudi Arabia.

In January, Saudi Foreign Minister Saud al-Faisal came to Ankara for talks on the future of the Middle East and his visit was followed earlier this month by Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf.

After the official visit of Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, who was in Ankara last week, Erdoğan announced that he wanted to invite the new Palestinian government to Turkey during the joint press conference. Erdoğan phoned Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas on Friday and talked with King Abdullah on Saturday, just after the visit of Olmert. Erdoğan will attend the Arab Economic Forum on Feb. 24 in Jidda and will meet one-on-one with Arab leaders including King Abdullah also, said sources from the Turkish Prime Ministry.

“With the leadership of Saudi Arabia, Pakistan is in search of a Muslim bloc,” said Arab sources. If the initiative continues, the goal is for the seven Muslim states to offer Israel a common proposal, announcing the conditions for the recognition of Palestine. In response, the reciprocal recognition of Israel could come before the heads of states summit in Saudi Arabia.

Ankara is trying to convince Israel:

Pakistani diplomatic sources noted the visits of U.S. Secretary of State Rice's visit to Israel and the Palestinian territories over the weekend, along with the visit of Syrian President Besar Esad to Iran, are not a coincidence. All regional parties, the diplomat said, are desperate to do something for peace in the Middle East.

According to Ankara, Saudi Arabia achieved a great success for establishment of dialogue between Hamas and the Fatah movement of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. It will be up to Turkey to convince Israel to give support to the latest initiative.

On the other hand the United States and Israel have agreed ahead of three-way meeting with the Palestinians to shun any new Palestinian government that does not renounce violence, recognize Israel and accept existing peace agreements, Olmert said on Sunday.

Iraqi neighbors will meet in Cairo:

Gül and King Abdullah also discussed the Iraqi issue, said a Turkish diplomat who attended the meetings. During the talks, Gül and his counterpart, Al Faisal, agreed the need to hold the foreign ministers' meeting of Iraq's neighboring countries. “The first meeting of high level officials is expected to take place in Baghdad but the foreign ministers meeting most probably will take place in Cairo,” said the same diplomat. TDN had reported at the beginning of February that Gül is not eager to go to Baghdad for the meeting.

Despite the announcement of Israel and the United States that they will not recognize the Palestine government if the new Palestinian government does not renounce violence, Turkey will continue attempts to convince Israel.

After the official visit of Israeli Premier Ehud Olmert, who was in Ankara last week, Erdoğan phoned Palestinian President Mahmut Abbas on Friday and talked with King Abdullah on Saturday. Erdoğan will attend an Arab Economic Forum on Feb. 24 in Jidda where he will meet one-on-one with Arab leaders as well as King Abdullah.

http://www.turkishdailynews.com.tr/arti ... wsid=66529

God Bless

David

[Exit40]

Kurds' struggle blocks Turkey's entry into EU
WORLD BRIEFINGS
By Andrew Borowiec
THE WASHINGTON TIMES
March 4, 2007


NICOSIA, Cyprus -- Their uprisings have been drowned in blood, but the cry "Freedom for Kurdistan" reverberates in the barren, wind-swept mountains where Turkey meets Syria, Iraq and Iran.
The unfulfilled quest of the Kurds for statehood is now emerging as a major barrier in Turkey's path to the European Union and in Ankara's relations with the United States.
It risks becoming the dominant issue of this year's Turkish parliamentary and presidential elections, and a considerable diplomatic irritant involving the United States, Europe and a large portion of the Middle East inhabited by Kurds -- an ethnic group deprived of self-rule for centuries.
Hardly a day goes by without Turkish threats to enter northern Iraq in pursuit of Kurdish rebels waging a 32-year-old guerrilla war that has claimed an estimated 37,000 lives. It is in that part of Iraq that the Kurds have succeeded in establishing a form of limited autonomy which, to the Turkish government, looms as the possible nucleus of a Kurdish state.
And the very concept, Turkish officials say, is dynamite under the foundations of the Turkish republic, where the Kurdish minority is officially labelled "mountain Turks" and where their national aspirations have been constantly thwarted.
The problem emerged with new urgency last month when two senior Turkish officials, Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul and Gen. Yasar Buyukanit, the chief of general staff, visited the United States in search of joint action to eliminate Kurdish guerrilla bases in Iraq. They returned home unhappy, if one believes the reaction of the Turkish press.
Turkish officials feel that the United States does not want to antagonize Iraqi Kurds, perhaps the only genuinely pro-American faction on the tormented Iraqi battlefield. Turkish and Greek analysts, unusually in agreement on this issue, claim that Washington wants to establish a firm base in Iraq's Kurdish areas in order to control Middle Eastern oil routes.
And to Turkey, a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and a key U.S. ally in an area where Europe meets Asia, any form of a Kurdish state is anathema.

Hope for freedom
There are no accurate statistics, but the number of Kurds living in Turkey, Iran, Iraq and Syria is estimated at 15 million to 20 million -- most of them in Turkey.
Their history is one of broken pledges, useless appeals for international help, murder, the destruction of entire villages, and an unsatisfied clamor for nationhood.

More Here

God Bless

David

[Exit40]

Iraqi Kurdistan: Three Suggestions

Wednesday, March 07, 2007

MaximsNews.com - By Ashley Bommer

Kurdistan is a mystery to most of the world. Say that you are going to Kurdistan. Most people may ask if you will be seeing Borat, the over-the-top, fictional character from Kazakhstan.

But say that you are going to Northern Iraq, what the nation’s neighbors, Turkey and Iran, call Kurdistan. People will ask "why?" followed by a grim "be safe."

True, the Kurds of Iraq have been cursed by history. With a population of over four million, under Saddam Hussein's brutal regime, thousands were poisoned by gas, millions were driven from their homes, and more than 3,000 of their villages were razed.

Now, in the midst of war, history should pay careful attention to what may happen next. The danger Kurdistan faces is overwhelming.

Their peripheral region falls between two hostile capitals, Ankara and Tehran. Below, what is now known as the world’s deadliest capital -- Baghdad.

In the middle of a political earthquake, what can Kurdistan possibly do to keep from being buried alive?

Above all, Kurdistan must protect its security. Driving through checkpoints and military posts, the reminder of what once had happened -- and what could happen again -- lingers thick.

But instead of mobilizing for their own protection, they are being told by the U.S. Commanding General in Baghdad to send their local forces, the peshmergas, known as one of the best fighting forces in the world, to Baghdad to fight a sectarian war.

The Kurdistan Regional Government is willing to protect American forces, but a smarter solution would be to use the peshmergas as a Rapid Reaction Force in Northern Iraq.

In November 2005, when US troops were in trouble in Mosul, President Barzani sent 5,000 peshmergas within one hour to help.

Rapid Reaction in Northern Iraq and along their frontier border towns -- including Kirkuk, Mosul and Diyala -- is where they are most effective, not as permanent deployments in Baghdad.

Second, establish and maintain a political dialogue which will create benchmarks with Ankara. Right now if you ask the Iraqi Kurds who is their biggest problem -- the Turks or the Arabs -- the almost unanimous response is the Turks.

The reason: years of suspicion, distrust, and conflicts over hot button issues such as oilfields, the status of Kirkuk, the PKK (the armed political movement of the Kurds that the US Government classifies as a terrorist organization) and Kurdistan's unknown future independence.

Before these conflicts destroy Kurdistan and Turkey's hope for a cooperative trade agreement and future, a dialogue leading to agreements on trade, Kirkuk and the PKK, between the two governments is necessary.

Lastly, but no less critical, the promotion of foreign direct investment and trade with the rest of the world. The Kurdistan Regional Government should invite Heads of Government and US Members of Congress to their capital, Irbil, to visit.

They should encourage and actively recruit business and hotel leaders to come as well. To generate economic growth, they should consider making Kurdistan a free economic zone. The zone concept based on low tariffs, tax holidays, and other investment incentives could be an important component of their strategy.

According to the Kurdistan Regional Government, already over 300 Turkish companies have come to Kurdistan, generating over a billion in foreign direct investment. More initiatives to bring in further foreign direct investment are needed.

The world can and will be quietly charmed by Kurdistan. An autonomous region that prides itself on learning -- so much so that there is a quill on their flag to symbolize education -- Kurdistan's leaders are visionary and reflective.

And their people, the Iraqi Kurds, are hard working and proud. The food is fresh, especially the sinfully sweet honeycomb, and the hospitality is unrivaled. If only more people would go and share a meal with them.

With daily flights to Irbil from Istanbul, and four flights a week from Amman; Kurdistan is not impossible to get to. And under the "if you build it, they will come," motto, the Iraqi Kurds are actively preparing to welcome foreign visitors.

Driving from the airport to the city, you feel like you have discovered Northern Iraq's version of Pudong (the futuristic city outside of Shanghai). New construction, apartments, and freshly planted trees line the drive like dominos.

The road ahead won't be easy. Kurdistan's long term strategy lies upon the Kurdistan Regional Government and the Iraqi Kurds's willingness to focus on the future, rather than the past.

Not many people can overcome years of oppression, terror, and war -- and head to the negotiating table -- but Iraqi Kurds are peshmergas as well as attentive students.


What seems like a quagmire to most, can most certainly bear an opportunity to them.

http://www.kurdmedia.com/articles.asp?id=14181

God Bless

David

[ruotsher]

Turkey Plans Iraq Invasion, Orders All Military Leave Cancelled

By: Sorcha Faal, and as reported to her Western Subscribers









In yet another blow to the Global War aims of the United States, the most militarily powerful Nation in the Middle East, Turkey, has ordered its Military Forces to prepare to invade Iraq.

Prime Minister Erdogan, along with the head of Turkey’s Military Forces, General Yasar Buyukanit, have taken this extraordinary step over the United States failure to contain the growing threat of Iraq’s Kurdish population and their fears that the Americans plan to set up an Independent Kurdish Nation.

According to Turkish press reports all Military leave in Turkey has been cancelled in preparation for war, and as we can read as reported by Turkey’s Zaman News Service in their report titled "Turkey readying for spring offensive against PKK", and which says:

"The leaves of military personnel have been canceled and additional forces have been deployed to the border with Iraq as the military apparently prepares for an operation against the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).

The measures come amid frustration with US inactivity against the PKK and the expected infiltration of PKK militants from their mountain bases in northern Iraq with the arrival of spring.

The military put all troops on alert at the Iraqi border after receiving intelligence reports that the PKK would carry out attacks as the snow melts in mountain passes, thus easing passage from Iraq to Turkey."

The United States has further inflamed the passions of Turkey’s Political and Military Leadership with the American US Congress’ planned adoption of a resolution condemning Turkey’s Armenian Genocide’, to which Turkey has vehemently denied.

Though the American White House and the United States Top Military Leaders have urged the US Congress not to adopt an Armenian Genocide measure their efforts appear to be failing, and to which Turkey has warned will call for the immediate expulsion of all US Military Forces from Turkish soil.

American War Leaders knowing of Turkey’s intention to invade Iraq have, likewise, issued the Turks a warning:

"The United States made it clear on Monday that it "certainly" opposed any Turkish military action inside northern Iraq to fight the terrorist Kurdistan Workers Party's presence there.

A top Turkish military commander at the weekend reaffirmed Ankara's right under international law to send troops into northern Iraq to attack the PKK terrorists hiding there if it saw fit. "Under international law, Turkey can always take measures against the terrorist organization in northern Iraq if our military needs require it," Army Commander Gen. İlker Başbuğ told reporters in Diyarbakır in the Southeast, the main scene of the PKK terrorism."

As we had, also, warned about in our March 3, 2007 report titled "US Alliance With ‘Cult Of Angels’ Raises Russian War Fears As World Rivers Face Mysterious New Danger", the dangers of Turkey’s confrontation with the United States will result in both Russia and China moving Military Forces into the Middle East to protect their strategic interests, and to which the Americans and their Allies will be forced to respond to.

Russian Military Analysts following the desperate moves of the United States to quickly achieve its war goals in the Middle East are reporting today that they concur with the dire estimates of American Military Forces coming from that Western Nation, and as we can read as reported by the Washington Post News Service in their article titled "Military Is Ill-Prepared For Other Conflicts", and which says:

"Four years after the invasion of Iraq, the high and growing demand for U.S. troops there and in Afghanistan has left ground forces in the United States short of the training, personnel and equipment that would be vital to fight a major ground conflict elsewhere, senior U.S. military and government officials acknowledge.

More troubling, the officials say, is that it will take years for the Army and Marine Corps to recover from what some officials privately have called a "death spiral," in which the ever more rapid pace of war-zone rotations has consumed 40 percent of their total gear, wearied troops and left no time to train to fight anything other than the insurgencies now at hand.

The risk to the nation is serious and deepening, senior officers warn, because the U.S. military now lacks a large strategic reserve of ground troops ready to respond quickly and decisively to potential foreign crises, whether the internal collapse of Pakistan, a conflict with Iran or an outbreak of war on the Korean Peninsula. Air and naval power can only go so far in compensating for infantry, artillery and other land forces, they said. An immediate concern is that critical Army overseas equipment stocks for use in another conflict have been depleted by the recent troop increases in Iraq, they said.

"We have a strategy right now that is outstripping the means to execute it," Gen. Peter J. Schoomaker, Army chief of staff, testified before the Senate Armed Services Committee on Thursday."

But the most troubling report of all from the Kremlin relating to these events are those ‘suggestions’ from Russian and Chinese Military Analysts that if war between the East and West is indeed imminent, there is no better time to confront the United States on its own soil then now.

http://www.whatdoesitmean.com/index995.htm

[Exit40]

Prime Minister Erdogan, along with the head of Turkey’s Military Forces, General Yasar Buyukanit, have taken this extraordinary step over the United States failure to contain the growing threat of Iraq’s Kurdish population and their fears that the Americans plan to set up an Independent Kurdish Nation.

Here is the problem in a nutshell. The Turks are fiercely opposed to an independant Kurdistan, and fear that a greater independance movement inside Turkey will lead to even more terrorism and civil strife in that region. This begs the question, why has the US done so little to resolve the PKK issue with Turkey, letting this foment into a critical situation ?

With Turkey striving to become ME energy central, and actually investing heavily in Kurdistan to further their cause, is this really an issue of seriousness at all ? I would think it might be if the PKK torpedoed any of the energy delivery systems being developed there. It seems likely the US might be using Turkey to take care of the PKK problem for them. If so, this is a plan destined to backfire. The Turks are a very serious people, not likely to take the direction the US would like them to.

I don't see the buildup of Russian and Chinese forces there yet, but this could start the issue if the situation really deteriorates, and spreads into Iran, the northeastern part of which also has a substantial Kurdish population.

I see Kurdistan as holding a very important position in this run-up to the big war we are expecting. The ice is getting thin, folks.

Ruotsher, thanks for the article.

God Bless You

David