Syrian Kurds rally against Syrian
President Assad in city of Qamishli (March 2012 photo)
ISTANBUL — In Syria, the seizing of control by Syrian Kurds of towns
close to the Turkish border has raised concerns in the Turkish capital,
Ankara. Turkish authorities say Syrian Kurds might seek to create their
own autonomous state, fueling similar demands from Turkey's Kurdish
minority.
News of Syrian Kurds taking control of towns from forces loyal to Syrian
President Bashar al-Assad has raised concerns in Ankara, according to
defense correspondent Metehan Demir of the Turkish newspaper Hurriyet.
He says long-standing Turkish fears of the creation of an independent
Kurdish state have resurfaced.
"It's perceived as a signal of a future autonomous area in this region,
just next to the Turkish border. This is second piece of a four piece
puzzle on the way to a Kurdistan country. Because one part is happening
in northern Iraq, [a] second part is in Syria, east Kurdistan is [in]
Iran and Northern Kurdistan as known according to their dreams is [the]
Turkish part," Demir said.
Ankara has been fighting a decades-long insurgency by the PKK, which
wants greater Kurdish rights in Turkey. Many PKK members are Syrian
Kurds.
According to international relations expert Soli Ozel of Istanbul's
Kadir Has University, the main concern of the Turkish government is that
the success of Syrian Kurds could fuel Turkey's Kurdish insurgency.
"Since our Kurdish problem has not been solved, and we are not near to
bringing to a conclusion, the prime minister will be concerned that
there will be a fallout from what is going on in Syria, especially
because in Syria the PKK-affiliated party appears to be the strong
political force," Ozel said.
In recent years, Ankara has developed strong ties with the leadership of
the semiautonomous Iraqi Kurdish regional government. That
relationship is built on burgeoning border trade. Sinan Ulgen of the
EDAM research institute says Ankara will be looking to Iraqi Kurdish
regional leader Masoud Barzani to temper the actions of Syrian Kurds.
"Turkey [is] relying on political leadership of the Iraqi Kurds, in
particular Barzani, to establish a relationship with the Syrian Kurds
themselves. And because of the success of this policy of engagement
with the Iraqi Kurds since 2008, this is the favored scenario in
Ankara," Ulgen said.
Ulgen acknowledges that Barzani has limited influence over the PKK and
its affiliates in Syria. And some questions are being raised in Turkey
about Barzani's reliability as an ally. Hundreds of Syrian Kurds who
have sought refuge in Iraqi Kurdistan reportedly are returning to Syria
with the support of Iraqi Kurds.
"It was Barzani who actually brought all the Syrian Kurdish opposition
together, and they came up with a pact and then everything unfolded
since then. So I really don't think the things happening in Syria are
happening without his knowledge or consent," Ozel said.
If Turkish diplomatic efforts fail to prevent PKK control in the Syrian
Kurdish region, analyst Ulgen does not rule out Ankara pursuing a
military solution.
"On the more hawkish attitudes of intervention in order to undermine the
PKK stranglehold in this region, which is something Turkey did do in
the past with regard to northern Iraq. Now that certainly is one
scenario if the PKK starts to establish in the Kurdish region of
northern Syria," Ulgen said.
Turkish military forces have been reinforced along the border with
Syria's Kurdish region. Analysts say that although Ankara will be wary
of any military operation, Turkey will be closely monitoring the actions
of the Syrian Kurds.
