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Tuesday, October 14, 2014

Turkey’s Erdogan faces one of his toughest political challenges - FT.com

Turkey’s Erdogan faces one of his toughest political challenges - FT.com

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October 10, 2014 6:27 pm
Turkey’s Erdogan faces one of his toughest political
challenges
By Daniel Dombey in Istanbul
Demonstrators protesting Turkey's
unwillingness to strike Isis in Syria clash with riot police in Ankara on
Thursday
http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/2823f1f4-508d-11e4-9822-00144feab7de.html?siteedition=intl#axzz3G7voDbeu
Recep Tayyip Erdogan is facing one of the worst
crises of his 11 years as Turkey’s leader – his refusal to strike against
jihadi militants rampaging just across the border in Syria has triggered deadly
protests at home and intense diplomatic pressure from erstwhile western
backers.
But on Friday, as he addressed a
rally of supporters in Trabzon in the Black Sea region, one of the most
nationalist parts of the country, Mr Erdogan displayed his characteristic
self-confidence and thundering rhetoric.
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IN Europe
Speaking before a mass of
flag-waving supporters, he denounced “dirty plots” hatched by enemies at home
and abroad disturbed by Turkey’s progress and
promised that he would pursue peace between Turks and Kurds until his dying
day.
““No country in the world has the
right to decide Turkey’s agenda,” he declared. He claimed was it the “only
country” helping Kobani, a Syrian Kurdish border town now besieged
by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, known as Isis, since Ankara had
taken in 200,000 refugees since the assault started.
But amid television images of
Turkish tanks standing by as Isis continues its onslaught on Kobani – one
report said the jihadis had taken 40 per cent of the town on Friday – some
commentators said Mr Erdogan’s position was becoming increasingly
perilous.
“There is no happy ending here; all
options are bad,” said Suat Kiniklioglu, a former ruling party member of
parliament turned Erdogan critic who noted with concerned the violence that
erupted on Turkish streets this week. “Erdogan’s fixation with regime change in
Syria has blinded his practical decision-making.”
For three years the Turkish leader
has campaigned for the ousting of Syrian president Bashar al-Assad, a former
ally who infuriated him by disregarding his advice and cracking down on the
first stirrings of protest at his rule in Syria.
Mr Erdogan insists Mr Assad’s
removal should remain the priority and has made US support for the creation of
a buffer zone in Syria, a condition of greater Turkish action against Isis.
But the problem for Turkey is that
the US and many others now see Isis, not Mr Assad, as the main threat.
Moreover, the crisis comes at a time
when Turkey’s international reputation has already suffered, with Mr Erdogan
attacked by critics for authoritarian tendencies.
“Turkey cannot just sit idle and
watch a massacre on its border,” said Sinan Ulgen at Carnegie Europe, adding
the “clock was ticking” for Turkish action. But he noted that as a state now
bordering jihadi territory – and with a complement of soldiers guarding an
ancient tomb within Isis-held territory in Syria – Turkey is painfully
vulnerable to Isis retaliation.
“If Isis wants to draw in Turkey,
they can,” he said.
Mr Erdogan faces pressure on
multiple fronts. The US is spelling out ever more specific demands for Turkey to support the anti-Isis
coalition. Chuck Hagel, secretary of defence, called on Ankara to open up the
air base at Incirlik, southern Turkey.
Following marathon meetings on
Thursday between senior members of the Turkish government and President Barack
Obama’s anti-Isis envoy, retired General John Allen, US military planners are
set to arrive in Ankara next week.
In depth
An increasingly complicated armed
conflict is pitting rebel groups not only against the regime and its allies,
but also against each other

Further reading
Staffan de Mistura, the UN envoy to
Syria, called on Friday for Ankara to allow “volunteers” to cross the border
and defend Kobani and thus avoid another Srebrenica, the Bosnian city where
thousands of men and boys were killed in 1995.
But Turkey has sought to prevent
Kurdish fighters and weapons from coming to the aid of the town, which is cut
off from other Kurdish strongholds.

Turkey is already feeling the
consequences back home. At least 31 people have died this week in protests by
angry Kurds at Ankara’s perceived inactivity
In sign that sectarian and ethnic
violence is spilling over from Syria, Islamist radicals and outraged Kurds have
clashed on Turkish streets.

On Thursday, two policemen were
killed and a police chief seriously wounded in Bingol in the east of the
country, in an apparent assassination attempt. Such attacks were common during
the worst of Turkey’s now 30-year war with the outlawed Kurdistan Workers
party, or PKK, which is affiliated with the defenders of Kobani.

Yet while Kobani’s supporters call
for action to help the town, most Turks oppose any step that could embroil
their country in a new Middle Eastern war.

Mr Kiniklioglu argued that ultimately
Mr Erdogan would be swayed by domestic politics, with parliamentary elections
next year, rather than US pressure.

William Hale, a historian of Turkish
foreign policy, said Ankara’s stance “made reasonable sense given the serious
lack of clarity in western policy and its own national interest”.
-------------------------------------------
Protests spread to Germany
In Germany, Turkish Kurds, who have
settled in the country since the 1960s, have staged angry demonstrations this
week, sometimes clashing with police and with supporters of the Islamic State
of Iraq and the Levant, the group known as Isis, writes Stefan Wagstyl.
In the latest incident on Friday,
Kurdish activists temporarily occupied the local offices of the Social Democrat
party, Chancellor Angela Merkel’s coalition partner. The protesters, who called
for armed solidarity with Kobani’s beleaguered Kurds, left peacefully after
talks with SPD members.

The protest followed demonstrations
involving hundreds of Turkish Kurds in cities including Hamburg, Stuttgart,
Düsseldorf and Munich, where there was a sit-in in the local offices of the
conservative CSU party.

The police were also braced for a
big demonstration in Düsseldorf on Saturday, when 12,000 people are expected.

The Kurdish Community in Germany, an
umbrella organisation, on Friday called for peaceful protests in support of
those suffering in Syria. The Central Council of Muslims in Germany appealed
for any demonstrations to be peaceful, warning that “some youths” had in recent
days had tried to bring “the war and hatred” to Germany.

COMMENT:

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It is a Mystery why would the
coalition not use Israel to take part in the fight against ISIL?  Is
Israel above all and is the son of a king of Mid East or Mis east belongs to
it? 

Israel  can create trouble for
the world and Mid East but would not take part to solve the problem.Would the
Super powers please explain to the world community of Nations why is it always
that we see it is being kept safe. 

Israel has the best trained armed
forces with latest Air to surface, navel and ground to air armament to bring
down ISIL in seconds but not used why? 

With what intent Israel being very
much at Mid Eastern country would not take part but would enjoy all the
facilities and support of the super powers while only the Muslim country would
fight with each other and are asked to solve the problem created by
Israel. 

It is now being confronted with
serious questions from among the Muslim world after UK Labor party abstained
from voting to support recognition of Palestine that too when it was not
binding. 

What does it mean ? Elites of World
Community of Nations opines that labor party supports Israel's Zionists
committal of genocide covertly and a strong supporter of Netanyahu regime. Now
question arises How long would UK use the Muslims to fight with each other and
UK  directing and controlling the show from behind the screen? 

This is not the first time Turkey is pressured
to work that would be detrimental to its national interest.


The world
intelligentsia opines that to humble Turkey down to Israel to work under
Israel's command and that is why Israel is kept safe for use to flex its muscle
once the things are fixed and settled for it to take over and rule on behalf of
the super powers.


General public opines Turkey should not do what it finds would
harm its national interest. until Israel takes part in the fight against
ISIL.with it.         

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