Ankara, Turkey – Turkey’s top general said Thursday that his army – which has been massing troops on the border with Iraq – was prepared to attack separatist Kurdish guerrillas in a cross-border offensive.
Gen. Yasar Buyukanit said the military was ready and awaiting government orders for an incursion, putting pressure on the government to support an offensive that risks straining ties with the United States and Europe and raising tensions with Iraqi Kurds.
“As soldiers, we are ready,” Buyukanit said at an international security conference in Istanbul.
Although the United States has branded the guerrillas a terrorist organization, Washington fears that Turkish military action could destabilize northern Iraq – the most stable part of the war-torn country. Washington also is concerned that supporting Turkey in an incursion could alienate the pro-American Iraqi Kurds.
Many Turks believe a major incursion would help finish off the rebels from the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK, which has been fighting for autonomy in Kurdish-dominated southeastern Turkey since 1984. Turkey’s human-rights record has been stained by allegations of excessive use of force in the fight against the guerrillas in a conflict that has killed tens of thousands of people.
Turkey last carried out a major incursion into Iraq a decade ago, before the U.S.-led invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein, but separatist Kurdish guerrillas, taking advantage of a power vacuum in northern Iraq, have escalated attacks on Turkish targets. The military says up to 3,800 rebels are now based in Iraq and that up to 2,300 operate inside Turkey.
Although the Turkish government promised to back the military, it has not so far asked Parliament for permission to deploy troops, anticipating problems with Washington, Iraq and the European Union – all of which have urged Turkey to show restraint and find diplomatic ways to deal with the Kurdish rebellion.
On Thursday, Buyukanit denounced what he said was a lack of assistance from allies.
“Turkey does not receive the necessary support in its fight against terrorism,” the general said. “There are countries which directly or indirectly support PKK terrorism.”
Buyukanit did not identify those countries.
