A Center for Middle Eastern Strategic Studies (ORSAM) Workshop

Kurds, Turks discuss future of Turkey-KRG ties (14^th August 2013)

14. August 2013 – Ankara – Kurdish politicians from the Gorran Movement, the main opposition party in the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) in Iraq, and Turkish diplomats, journalists and academics came together to discuss the future of relations between Turkey and the KRG at a workshop held in Ankara.

The workshop, titled “Political developments in the regional government of Iraqi Kurdistan and the future of relations between Turkey and Iraqi Kurds,” was organized by the Ankara-based Center for Middle Eastern Strategic Studies (ORSAM) on Thursday.

Speaking on the relations between Turkey and the KRG, Sardar Aziz, Gorran Movement parliamentary election candidate, stated that Turkey has changed and Ankara’s ties with the KRG were the result of this change. Referring to the settlement process launched by the Turkish government to solve the Kurdish issue, Aziz maintained that to have good relations with the KRG, Turkey needs to have peace at home. “Therefore, the Kurdistan Workers’ Party [PKK] plays an important role here because the PKK does have an influence on Turkey-KRG ties,” said Aziz. Turkey’s Justice and Development Party (AK Party) is increasing its dialogue with the KRG as the withdrawal of the PKK terrorists to the Kandil region continues as part of an ongoing settlement process to end PKK terrorism.

AK Party Deputy Chairman Hüseyin Çelik held a number of talks with the autonomous northern Iraqi administration in late April. Çelik met with KRG leader Massoud Barzani behind closed doors.

However, Aziz complained about the lack of transparency in relations between Ankara and Arbil, adding that Turkey should not only consider the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) led by Barzani as a sole interlocutor but should maintain ties with all the parties in the KRG.

“While the KDP is becoming more powerful, other groups are feeling more marginalized. Gorran welcomes the KRG’s close ties with Turkey, but is also concerned to see that the Turkey-KRG relations are only based on ties with the KDP,” said Aziz.

Aziz also spoke to Today’s Zaman about his new book on Turkey-KRG relations. “It covers the background of the shift in Turkish policy over Kurds. The book will be a groundbreaking one,” said Aziz.

Şaban Kardaş, a lecturer in the department of international relations at TOBB University, noted that Turkey’s relations with the KRG are a good example of Turkey’s pragmatic foreign policy, adding that the economic interests have overcome the political disputes between two sides.

“Turkey no longer sees Kurds as a source of threat, but considers them as an asset. Turkey relies on the KRG to solve its Kurdish issue. Turkey believes that the KRG can play a constructive role,” said Kardaş.

Kardaş also criticized some foreign countries over their discomfort with Turkey-KRG relations. “Before, these countries criticized Turkey for not having good ties with the KRG, and now they are criticizing the opposite,” said Kardaş.Turkey’s economic ties with the KRG have raised eyebrows in Baghdad and Washington in recent years. Growing ties in the area of energy between Turkey and the Kurdish region have attracted the criticism of the US, which is concerned that bypassing the Iraqi central government could pose a significant risk to the country’s stability.

Burak Bilgehan Özpek, a lecturer in the department of international relations at TOBB University, underlined that the democratization process is of great importance for the future of the KRG. “Democracy is crucial for Kurdistan. When the central government lacks democracy, it becomes more important for de facto administrations to adopt democracy. Currently, the KRG is neither a democratic nor an autocratic structure. There are still problems in the election process, economic structure, human rights issues, judiciary and the political system,” said Özpek.

Muhammed Ali, Gorran Movement member of the Political Research Center in Sulaimaniya, spoke about the overview of Gorran’s solutions to the main problems in the KRG. “Internal problems within the KRG are the main reason for the birth of the Gorran Movement. The major problems in the KRG are the separation of power, centralization and corruption,” said Ali.