Is it time for Türkiye to leave Iraq?

According to the international group Tasnim news agency, nine people died from The officers and non-commissioned officers of the Turkish army are still at the top of the Turkish media news due to the attack of the PKK terrorist group. Now there are not a few analysts and politicians who, in addition to condemning the PKK, also criticize Erdogan and challenge his strategy in the fight against terrorism.

One ​​of These criticisms are why, despite all these casualties, Turkish forces still have bases in Iraq and Syria? Many of Erdoğan’s critics believe that the continued presence of Turkish forces in Iraq and Syria will only increase casualties and that Ankara should withdraw from the territory of both its neighbors.

Continued illegal presence The Turkish army in Iraq has always been criticized by many Iraqi parties and politicians. However, Ankara gives two old excuses to legitimize its presence: firstly, during the reign of Saddam Hussein, a security agreement was formed between Ankara and Baghdad, and based on that, the Turkish military has the right to pursue and fight against PKK has gained the territory of Iraq.

Secondly, Ankara officials say, we start the security of our country from the source of the threat, and if we are not in Iraq, They are attacking us.

The strange words and justifications of the political and security officials of Turkey are expressed while, by the way, Turkish military and security agents are always attacked by terrorists, not inside their own country, but in Iraq. PKK have been placed!

In other words, Turkish soldiers will be killed in the conflict only when they are attacked in the north of Iraq. That too in the conditions when the weather is foggy and Turkish drones cannot monitor the possibility of an attack.

Is Turkey’s problem security Is it?

PKK terrorist group in the past years, simultaneously with the increasing defense power and the use of modern equipment in the Turkish armed forces, All the land is stuck and has lost the ability to attack and confront the Turkish military. , forest and mountain cameras equipped with special sensors, thermal cameras and other advanced equipment, as well as managing a very wide network of local spies, PKK not only in Istanbul, Ankara or the Black Sea coast, but also in the provinces of the Kurdistan region. And on the border of Kurdistan region of Iraq and Turkey, it cannot take action against Turkey. America is constantly attacked by armed Turkish drones and artillery fire and cannot penetrate the Turkish border. After all, an ultra-advanced and very expensive security wall has been created between Turkey and Syria, which has eliminated the possibility of penetration and threats.

Regarding the above points, it can be said clearly, Turkey’s main concern for its presence in Iraq and Syria is not to maintain security, but to seek other interests such as security influence and scoring points through military threats.

The enemy wants the same!

Northern Iraqi media have announced that since 2015 The rekindling of the war between Turkey and the PKK, at least 755 villages in different regions of the Iraqi Kurdistan Region, have been completely evacuated and the residents of these villages have been displaced due to the fear of repeated bombings.

After all, neither traders nor drivers nor villagers, beekeepers and shepherds can do their work properly in these areas. As a result of the continuation of the current situation, the lives and livelihoods of thousands of villagers and border dwellers in northern Iraq have been damaged. , the media under the command of the ruling party call this plan an enmity with Turkey and a threat to Turkey’s national security.

These media say: “You ask why we don’t leave Iraq?” Don’t you know that the PKK also wants the same thing? Terrorists are looking for exactly this kind of discussion, and by raising this issue, you are throwing grist to their mill. Maintaining Turkey’s national security is an important issue and we can only be safe from threats when we are present in Iraq and Syria”.

Some radical pro-Erdogan media have announced that the withdrawal proposal from Iraq, it is considered treason and must be followed.

Sinan Burhan, one of the writers of Yeni Akit newspaper, who openly supports the discourse of the necessity of dissolving the republic and restoring the caliphate system in Turkey, about this The subject wrote: “Turkey is fighting for its survival in Syria and northern Iraq. Therefore, in order to reach a definitive solution, it must permanently enter northern Iraq. Because Türkiye’s security starts from Syria and Iraq. As we have seen, America and the Zionist regime divide the Middle East along ethnic and sectarian lines. There is no peace in Baghdad, Damascus and Beirut, and their goal is to create a greater Israel. They will invade Lebanon, they will occupy part of Syria, they will occupy part of Iraq. So we have to be there”.

Also, Malih Altnok, one of the analysts of Sabah newspaper, which is one of the main newspapers of the Justice and Development Party’s think tank, claimed that America and Israel intend to They are threatening Turkey’s national security from inside Iraq and Syria, and the only way to deal with this threat is the permanent presence of the Turkish army in these two countries.

A few golden cards in the hands of Iraq

One ​​of the most important questions about the reasons for the continued presence of Turkish forces in Iraq is that Can the Iraqi government use special tools to force the Turkish army to retreat? The answer is yes.

The government and people of Iraq heroically fought against extreme terrorism and now this country is on the path of reconstruction, development and development. Undoubtedly, Iraq, as an important and rich actor in the region, has very important golden cards against Turkey, which it can use properly when necessary.

Some of these cards are:

1.Turkey’s dependence on Iraqi oil and gas: Iraq is one of the most important It is the source of oil and gas transfer to Turkey, and Turkey has a strong dependence and need for Iraq’s fossil energy sources. As a result, Baghdad can condition the continuation of oil exports now and the transfer of gas in the coming years to the withdrawal of the military.

2.Consumption market: According to the activists of the Commodity Exporters Union in Turkey, Iraq has become Turkey’s second most important trading partner, and if the huge consumption market of this oil-rich country is closed to Turkey, Turkish producers and traders will suffer irreparable losses. will face.

3.Development path project: This project as a major and fundamental plan to connect the Faw port of Iraq to the Mediterranean through Turkey, is a vital resource to ensure Turkey’s economy in the coming years, and Baghdad can make the final implementation of the project subject to Ankara’s compliance with Baghdad’s demands.

In the end it must be said, without The PKK terrorist group is one of the destructive and anti-security organizations in the region, and the actions of this group under the orders of Abdullah Ocalan have damaged the security and stability of Turkey, Iraq, Syria and Iran for 4 decades.

In addition to causing hundreds of billions of dollars in financial damage, this group has caused nearly a hundred thousand people to lose their lives and thousands of villages to be evacuated in long-term conflicts. But the reality is that even the removal of terrorist threats should be subject to the rules of good neighborliness and the threatened country should not cause trouble for its neighbors under the pretext of fighting terrorism.

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