"Turkey Considers Building Two Military Bases in Iraq to Counter the PKK
Publication: Eurasia Daily Monitor Volume: 6 Issue: 73
April 16, 2009 03:21 PM Age: 2 hrs
Category: Eurasia Daily Monitor, Home Page, Military/Security, Turkey, Middle East
By: Emrullah Uslu
Tariq al-Hashimi, Vice President of Iraq
Turkey's Chief of the General Staff, General Ilker Basbug, delivered a speech at the War Academies Command in Istanbul on April 14, addressing key issues including civil-military relations, national identity, the role of religion, and the fight against terrorism (EDM, April 15). The most surprising part of the speech was his progressive approach toward Turkey's Kurdish question. He redefined Turkey's long term exclusionist and nationalist outlook by referring to the founder of the modern Turkish state Mustafa Kemal Ataturk: 'Turkey was founded by the peoples of Turkey, who are called the Turkish nation.' He explained his reasons for selecting this lesser known quote: 'Ataturk is not saying Turkey is founded by Turks but peoples of Turkey' (NTV, April 14). In addition, Basbug also stated that 'terrorists are human too, we should find a way to reach out to their families...the state should consider finding ne"
More:Turkey Considers Building Two Military Bases in Iraq to Counter the PKK - The Jamestown Foundation
