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KURDISTAN: GREAT, GREATER THE GREATEST?
Pravda, Russia
June 24 2014
23.06.2014
The territorial integrity of Iraq is endangered after the massive
offensive of Islamists in June. The Iraqi army left the key cities of
Tirkuk, Mosul and Kirkuk, and the Kurdish Peshmerga Army seize the city
of Kirkuk. An old Iraqi proverb says: "He who controls Kirkuk, controls
Iraq." Will the long-cherished dream of the Kurdish state become true?
The city of Kirkuk, together with the surrounding oil-rich province of
Tamim, lies the basis of a political and economic dispute between the
Kurdish autonomy (Iraqi Kurdistan), headed by Massoud Barzani and the
Iraqi government led by Shiite Nouri al-Maliki. In mid-June, the Sunni
Islamist movement of "Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant" (ISIL,
aka ISIS) intervened in the dispute. Representatives of the movement
announced the creation of their own state on the territory of Syria,
Lebanon and Iraq - the core of the future of the Great Caliphate.
Thus, the territorial integrity of Iraq is now in danger.
"The country disintegrated long ago. Today, they move in the direction
of the pieces that they picked up," Stafford Clarry, a former United
Nations representative in Iraqi Kurdistan, told Time. "Forget about
the national point of view and attempts to build a unified country.
This train has long left the station," said the expert.
The United States invaded Iraq in 2003 to topple Saddam Hussein's
regime, to establish control over oil-rich regions of Iraq. Saddam
Hussein was a friend with the Kurds at first and even promised them
autonomy, but then conducted an operation of mass genocide of the
Kurds, known as "Anfal." During the operation, up to 180,000 Kurds
were deported to an unknown destination and executed. A number of
Kurdish villages and the town of Halabja were showered with chemical
bombs. Saddam was trying to make Kurdish ancestral lands, including
Kirkuk, Arabic.
After the withdrawal of American troops in 2011, the Kurds did not gain
independence. The Americans took into account the opinion of Turkey
and its then-ally - Syria, that also have numerous Kurdish communities
that insist on their territorial integrity. Keeping 30 to 40 million
people obedient was getting increasingly difficult. The "Arab Spring"
was a catalyst process. In Syria, the Kurds received autonomy from
Assad and control their territories. In Turkey, Kurdistan Workers'
Party (PKK) has long been committed to this, but the talks between
Turkish PM Erdogan and Kurdish leader Abdullah Ocalan were suspended
under the pretext of abuse by the Kurds. It was claimed that the PKK
had not stopped armed struggle.
The Kurds call the autonomy in Iraq Southern Kurdistan and in Syria -
Western Kurdistan; compact settlements in Turkey - Northern Kurdistan
and in Iran - Eastern Kurdistan. The Kurds also live in Armenia,
Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan. In the north and west, most Kurds profess
Sunni Islam. Shiite Muslims live mainly in the south and east. Muslim
Kurds practice Sufism, a doctrine of eternal wisdom. In addition to
Muslims in the "Great Kurdistan" as the Kurds call their hypothetical
state, there are representatives of other religious confessions:
Yezidis, Christian monophysites, Zoroastrians, Ali-Hulks and others.
During the 1990s, there were military clashes between the Kurds of
various confessions, so this is not a monolithic community, as is
commonly believed.
The President of Iraqi Kurdistan is Massoud Barzani (elected in 2005).
The autonomy has been flourishing for all these years, thanks to
one-way sales of oil through Turkey, against the will of the central
government. Billions of dollars of foreign investment caused an
unprecedented construction boom. Today, Iraqi Kurdistan is the most
developed province in Iraq. After the ISIS army invaded Iraq from
Syria on June 12, Peshmerga forces took control of the city of Kirkuk,
which, although not included in the Kurdish autonomy, is considered
a Kurdish city. The Peshmerga leadership said it would independently
maintain peace in the province and autonomy and would not help Prime
Minister Al-Maliki expel Islamists from other territories. According
to Time, the decision was made despite USA's pressure. On June 14,
clashes occurred between the Kurds and government forces near Kirkuk,
which increased distrust between Baghdad and Erbil.
The Kurds believe that the time has come to annex the city and proclaim
independence of Southern Kurdistan. Thus, they win a real chance to
subsequently form the Greater Kurdistan. The only people, who can
prevent the creation of Greater Kurdistan, are the Kurds themselves.
"The history of the Kurdish people is tragic. Enemies managed to
break apart the nation using the religious factor, sow hatred and
incite fratricidal war," - wrote Ishhan Miro, chief editor of the Free
Kurdistan newspaper. "It has been possible for centuries and continues
today. And it is a great pity that we often become accomplices of
these bloody crimes. Being a Kurd, a Yezidi, a Muslim, an Alawite,
a Christian, a Jew, or a representative of another religious group,
one must first think about the unity of nation. If it is not us, then
it is our children, who will be destined to return to their homeland
not to live on a foreign land for life, not to dissolve and disappear
in the sea of human beings."
Russian experts are skeptical about the idea. "I believe that the
events that are happening in Iraq now, can not be interpreted in
such a way that there is a big chance for the Kurds to unite in a
single state," Ajar Kurtov, a historian, political scientist and chief
editor of "Problems of National Strategy" told Pravda.Ru. "The notion
of the Kurds implies a certain ethnicity, which actually consists
of many different subjects. During the XX-XXI centuries, there were
situations, when a part of the Kurds would trigger armed uprisings,
and another part would not support them. Then they would fight with
one another. That is, the Kurds are not consolidated on a truly
national basis. They are divided by national boundaries, political
preferences. Therefore, the day, when the united state of Kurdistan
may appear on the map of the world is a fantasy," said the expert.
The policy of the United States towards self-determination of the
Kurds would be different depending on whom the Americans supported.
When it was necessary to remove Hussein, the United States would claim
that the Kurds needed independence. As soon as the issue of oil came
to the surface, they preferred to talk about the territorial integrity
of Iraq. The State Department continues to talk about it today. And
what about Russia?
"I think it is quite possible that Russia may support the new state,"
Anatoly Tsiganok, the Director of the Center for Military Forecasting,
corresponding member of the Academy of Military Sciences, told
Pravda.Ru. "I think it is necessary. We forget that the Kurdish
population - from 40 to 60 million people - was artificially
divided, and I think they have the right to self-determination,
just like Ossetians and Abkhazians do. Frankly, when it comes to
self-determination of unrecognized states (there are about 30 of them
in the world), it is a question to recognize either their independence
or territorial integrity."
However, the precedent of the Crimea showed that people's will for
self-determination can not be broken either with dogmas of territorial
integrity or pressure from global players. One can see a new radical
Sunni state growing on the ruins of the Middle East. Kurdistan is
rising. Time will show whether Syria, Lebanon and Iraq can survive. It
seems that they will become different states.
Lyuba Lulko
Pravda.Ru
http://english.pravda.ru/world/asia/23-06-2014/127869-kurdistan-0/
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
Pravda, Russia
June 24 2014
23.06.2014
The territorial integrity of Iraq is endangered after the massive
offensive of Islamists in June. The Iraqi army left the key cities of
Tirkuk, Mosul and Kirkuk, and the Kurdish Peshmerga Army seize the city
of Kirkuk. An old Iraqi proverb says: "He who controls Kirkuk, controls
Iraq." Will the long-cherished dream of the Kurdish state become true?
The city of Kirkuk, together with the surrounding oil-rich province of
Tamim, lies the basis of a political and economic dispute between the
Kurdish autonomy (Iraqi Kurdistan), headed by Massoud Barzani and the
Iraqi government led by Shiite Nouri al-Maliki. In mid-June, the Sunni
Islamist movement of "Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant" (ISIL,
aka ISIS) intervened in the dispute. Representatives of the movement
announced the creation of their own state on the territory of Syria,
Lebanon and Iraq - the core of the future of the Great Caliphate.
Thus, the territorial integrity of Iraq is now in danger.
"The country disintegrated long ago. Today, they move in the direction
of the pieces that they picked up," Stafford Clarry, a former United
Nations representative in Iraqi Kurdistan, told Time. "Forget about
the national point of view and attempts to build a unified country.
This train has long left the station," said the expert.
The United States invaded Iraq in 2003 to topple Saddam Hussein's
regime, to establish control over oil-rich regions of Iraq. Saddam
Hussein was a friend with the Kurds at first and even promised them
autonomy, but then conducted an operation of mass genocide of the
Kurds, known as "Anfal." During the operation, up to 180,000 Kurds
were deported to an unknown destination and executed. A number of
Kurdish villages and the town of Halabja were showered with chemical
bombs. Saddam was trying to make Kurdish ancestral lands, including
Kirkuk, Arabic.
After the withdrawal of American troops in 2011, the Kurds did not gain
independence. The Americans took into account the opinion of Turkey
and its then-ally - Syria, that also have numerous Kurdish communities
that insist on their territorial integrity. Keeping 30 to 40 million
people obedient was getting increasingly difficult. The "Arab Spring"
was a catalyst process. In Syria, the Kurds received autonomy from
Assad and control their territories. In Turkey, Kurdistan Workers'
Party (PKK) has long been committed to this, but the talks between
Turkish PM Erdogan and Kurdish leader Abdullah Ocalan were suspended
under the pretext of abuse by the Kurds. It was claimed that the PKK
had not stopped armed struggle.
The Kurds call the autonomy in Iraq Southern Kurdistan and in Syria -
Western Kurdistan; compact settlements in Turkey - Northern Kurdistan
and in Iran - Eastern Kurdistan. The Kurds also live in Armenia,
Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan. In the north and west, most Kurds profess
Sunni Islam. Shiite Muslims live mainly in the south and east. Muslim
Kurds practice Sufism, a doctrine of eternal wisdom. In addition to
Muslims in the "Great Kurdistan" as the Kurds call their hypothetical
state, there are representatives of other religious confessions:
Yezidis, Christian monophysites, Zoroastrians, Ali-Hulks and others.
During the 1990s, there were military clashes between the Kurds of
various confessions, so this is not a monolithic community, as is
commonly believed.
The President of Iraqi Kurdistan is Massoud Barzani (elected in 2005).
The autonomy has been flourishing for all these years, thanks to
one-way sales of oil through Turkey, against the will of the central
government. Billions of dollars of foreign investment caused an
unprecedented construction boom. Today, Iraqi Kurdistan is the most
developed province in Iraq. After the ISIS army invaded Iraq from
Syria on June 12, Peshmerga forces took control of the city of Kirkuk,
which, although not included in the Kurdish autonomy, is considered
a Kurdish city. The Peshmerga leadership said it would independently
maintain peace in the province and autonomy and would not help Prime
Minister Al-Maliki expel Islamists from other territories. According
to Time, the decision was made despite USA's pressure. On June 14,
clashes occurred between the Kurds and government forces near Kirkuk,
which increased distrust between Baghdad and Erbil.
The Kurds believe that the time has come to annex the city and proclaim
independence of Southern Kurdistan. Thus, they win a real chance to
subsequently form the Greater Kurdistan. The only people, who can
prevent the creation of Greater Kurdistan, are the Kurds themselves.
"The history of the Kurdish people is tragic. Enemies managed to
break apart the nation using the religious factor, sow hatred and
incite fratricidal war," - wrote Ishhan Miro, chief editor of the Free
Kurdistan newspaper. "It has been possible for centuries and continues
today. And it is a great pity that we often become accomplices of
these bloody crimes. Being a Kurd, a Yezidi, a Muslim, an Alawite,
a Christian, a Jew, or a representative of another religious group,
one must first think about the unity of nation. If it is not us, then
it is our children, who will be destined to return to their homeland
not to live on a foreign land for life, not to dissolve and disappear
in the sea of human beings."
Russian experts are skeptical about the idea. "I believe that the
events that are happening in Iraq now, can not be interpreted in
such a way that there is a big chance for the Kurds to unite in a
single state," Ajar Kurtov, a historian, political scientist and chief
editor of "Problems of National Strategy" told Pravda.Ru. "The notion
of the Kurds implies a certain ethnicity, which actually consists
of many different subjects. During the XX-XXI centuries, there were
situations, when a part of the Kurds would trigger armed uprisings,
and another part would not support them. Then they would fight with
one another. That is, the Kurds are not consolidated on a truly
national basis. They are divided by national boundaries, political
preferences. Therefore, the day, when the united state of Kurdistan
may appear on the map of the world is a fantasy," said the expert.
The policy of the United States towards self-determination of the
Kurds would be different depending on whom the Americans supported.
When it was necessary to remove Hussein, the United States would claim
that the Kurds needed independence. As soon as the issue of oil came
to the surface, they preferred to talk about the territorial integrity
of Iraq. The State Department continues to talk about it today. And
what about Russia?
"I think it is quite possible that Russia may support the new state,"
Anatoly Tsiganok, the Director of the Center for Military Forecasting,
corresponding member of the Academy of Military Sciences, told
Pravda.Ru. "I think it is necessary. We forget that the Kurdish
population - from 40 to 60 million people - was artificially
divided, and I think they have the right to self-determination,
just like Ossetians and Abkhazians do. Frankly, when it comes to
self-determination of unrecognized states (there are about 30 of them
in the world), it is a question to recognize either their independence
or territorial integrity."
However, the precedent of the Crimea showed that people's will for
self-determination can not be broken either with dogmas of territorial
integrity or pressure from global players. One can see a new radical
Sunni state growing on the ruins of the Middle East. Kurdistan is
rising. Time will show whether Syria, Lebanon and Iraq can survive. It
seems that they will become different states.
Lyuba Lulko
Pravda.Ru
http://english.pravda.ru/world/asia/23-06-2014/127869-kurdistan-0/
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress