Today’s Zaman, Turkey
Feb 15 2007
Büyükanýt vows to counter attempts to divide Turkey
Turkey’s top military commander has vowed to forcefully counter any
attempts at the division of Turkey. "As long as the dynamic forces
exist, those who dream of dividing Turkey will wake up to a
nightmare," Büyükanýt told a meeting of Turks living in the United
States during a visit.
"They will get their lesson. We must have faith in this. No one can
dare to divide Turkey." Büyükanýt did not name any specific sources
threatening the division of Turkey but his comments were interpreted
as targeting the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) and Iraqi
Kurds. The PKK has bases in the mountains of northern Iraq and Turkey
is pressing the United States and Iraq to take measures to deal with
the problem.
The government has recently intensified it rhetoric, saying Turkey
might consider a cross-border operation into Iraq if its demands for
action against the PKK go unheeded.
Ankara is also worried about the fate of Kirkuk, the disputed
oil-rich city in northern Iraq which is home to an ethnically-mixed
population of Turkmens, Kurds and Arabs. Turkish officials say a
referendum on status of the city, slated for the end of this year,
should be postponed because Kurds have migrated to the city over the
past few years in what Ankara sees as a systematic effort to change
the demographic structure of Kirkuk ahead of the vote.
Büyükanýt said the problems of the PKK presence in Iraq and the issue
of protecting Iraq’s territorial integrity were interrelated. He
added Turkey should go ahead with a `consistent and future-looking’
policy while it deals with those problems.
The top military commander was expected to raise Turkey’s concerns
with the situation in Iraq in talks with US Vice President Dick
Cheney and Stephen Hadley, the national security advisor for
President George W. Bush.
Büyükanýt’s visit to the United States comes just days after Foreign
Minister Abdullah Gül voiced Turkish concerns during a week-long
visit. The United States has appointed a special envoy in charge of
coordinating US efforts to counter the PKK threat, but Prime Minister
Recep Tayyip Erdoðan expressed unease about the measure, saying it
has not produced visible outcomes.
Serious threats
In a speech frequently interrupted by cheers, Büyükanýt also
reiterated that Turkey was faced with serious problems and threats
stemming from instability in its region, citing the volatile
situation in Iraq, the Caucasus and Cyprus.
`As I said before, the Republic of Turkey has never faced threats,
risks and difficulties of this magnitude since 1923,’ the date of the
republic’s founding, said Büyükanýt. `Turkey has never had that many
problems at the same time since its founding.’
He urged the nation not to lose faith. `We have fears that we need to
overcome. Who can divide Turkey?’ he said.
He also said Turkish democracy and secularism would remain intact.
`Turkey is a democratic, secular and unified state. There is and will
be no power that can change this.’
Büyükanýt is also expected to raise the issue of an Armenian
resolution in the US Congress in his talks with US officials. The
House of Representatives is expected to vote on the resolution soon
which urges the US administration to recognize Armenian genocide
claims.
He said the resolution saddened Turkey but added that he would not
start a `polemic’ by pledging retaliation. `We as the Turkish Armed
Forces do not talk like that. We work together with the United
States,’ he said. `But I believe the citizens of the United States
would avoid moves that would hurt Turkey.’