http://www.geostrategy-direct.com/geostrategy-direct/secure/2005/1_11/2.asp
Kurds are best U.S. ally in Iraq but radicals in their midst could trigger war with Turkey The Kurdish Workers Party (PKK) presence in northern Iraq remains a headache for the United States. Bush administration officials and the Joint Chiefs of Staff have agreed that the PKK presence must be removed from northern Iraq to ensure the stability of the country. They cited Iraqi and Turkish opposition to the PKK as well as concern that northern Iraq would turn into an insurgency haven against neighboring Turkey. But the United States has not determined how to eliminate the PKK without jeopardizing the support of the larger Kurdish community in northern Iraq. The Kurds are regarded as the best allies the United States has in Iraq. "It's a difficult task and to dig them out and engage that fight, I think, will take a considerable amount of forces and we need to do that at the right time," said Lt. Gen. Lance Smith, deputy chief of U.S. Central Command. The fate of the PKK presence in northern Iraq was a leading issue in talks during the visit by U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage to Turkey. On Jan. 3, Armitage reportedly assured Turkish leaders that U.S., Turkish and Iraqi officials would convene talks later in 2005 to discuss the PKK, which appears on the State Department list of terrorist groups. "We're going to have, we hope in the near future, a trilateral meeting here in Ankara to discuss the whole question of the PKK," Armitage said. Turkish officials said the meeting would include a plan to destroy the PKK bases in northern Iraq. They said Iraq would host the meeting, but no date has been set. At a recent briefing, Smith acknowledged Ankara's concern over the presence of an estimated 4,000 PKK insurgents south of the Turkish border. The general said the U.S. military was sharing intelligence with Iraq and Turkey regarding the PKK. But he said a major problem was distinguishing between PKK operatives and other Kurds. The PKK is constantly moving between Iraq and neighboring countries as well as settling within Kurdish communities. "They've integrated themselves into society, so it's very difficult for us to tell who is PKK and who is not, as it is difficult for the Turkish forces that are up in the region to tell," Smith said. "And when we move against them, they move into other parts of the world or of the area that gives them some level of sanctuary." Turkey has warned the United States that Ankara would not allow the PKK to remain in northern Iraq. Officials said Turkey's military was increasing its presence along the Iraqi border and is conducting exercises that could portend a military operation in northern Iraq in the next few months. ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~--> Take a look at donorschoose.org, an excellent charitable web site for anyone who cares about public education! http://us.click.yahoo.com/_OLuKD/8WnJAA/cUmLAA/TySplB/TM --------------------------------------------------------------------~-> -------------------------- Want to discuss this topic? Head on over to our discussion list, [EMAIL PROTECTED] -------------------------- Brooks Isoldi, editor [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.intellnet.org Post message: osint@yahoogroups.com Subscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] *** FAIR USE NOTICE. This message contains copyrighted material whose use has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. OSINT, as a part of The Intelligence Network, is making it available without profit to OSINT YahooGroups members who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information in their efforts to advance the understanding of intelligence and law enforcement organizations, their activities, methods, techniques, human rights, civil liberties, social justice and other intelligence related issues, for non-profit research and educational purposes only. We believe that this constitutes a 'fair use' of the copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the U.S. Copyright Law. If you wish to use this copyrighted material for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use,' you must obtain permission from the copyright owner. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/osint/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
