As Republican backing for the war in Iraq starts to wither, the Turkish government seems almost poised to intervene in the ethnically Kurdish-dominated northern Iraq. Although no explicit threats have been made, the Iraqi foreign minister claimed Monday that the neighboring country had amassed 140,000 troops along its border in preparation for a possible invasion.
Turkey has legitimate concerns with regards to security in the region. The Kurdistan Workers Party, or PKK, has used the relatively stable northern Iraq as a staging point for incursions into Turkish territory as part of an ongoing campaign against the Turkish government and military that has left tens of thousands dead since the conflict erupted in 1984.
Restraint, however, should be Turkey’s first priority in dealing with the PKK. Kurdish Iraq accounts for nearly a third of Iraqi territory, and while it may not be a beacon of progress, it is comparatively strong compared to the rest of the nation. The insertion of a Turkish force nearly the size of the current U.S. military presence would make the already volatile situation disastrous.
Historical animosities, a high solder-to-civilian ratio and a surge in weapons availability for the region would only exacerbate the fragile political situation plaguing Iraqi society, with ramifications that would be felt far beyond northern cities such as Mosul and Kirkuk.
Turkey should instead opt for cooperating with U.S.-led forces and the Iraqi government before rattling its saber on such a grand scale. A joint military effort among these parties could reasonably subdue the PKK without Turkey having to resort to yet another invasion of the fractured ancient Mesopotamia.
