Aug 12, 2013, 3:44 PM

Will Turkey return to policy of zero problems with neighbors?

TEHRAN, Aug. 12 (MNA) – Turkey’s regional diplomacy is currently very focused on the Kurds. Prominent Kurdish political figures from Iraq and Syria have visited the Turkish capital over the past few days, which shows that the Kurdish issue has become a priority for Ankara. The lack of progress in the talks between the Turkish government and the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) and the developments in the border area between Turkey and Syria are the main factors behind the sudden shift in policy.

The policy of zero problems with neighbors has been a centerpiece of the diplomacy of Turkey’s ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) since it came to power in 2003. However, the crisis in Syria greatly altered the political and diplomatic equations in the region, and Ankara was forced to change its approach to regional developments, leading to a series of confrontations with some neighboring governments.

The crisis in Syria has had a major impact on the situation in the Kurdish majority areas of Turkey, and it seems that Ankara is trying to take preemptive measures to prevent a spillover of the crisis into its territory. But Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s approach toward the Kurdish issue has been repeatedly criticized by his opponents inside the country, and many Turks are opposed to his negotiations with the PKK.

Manwhile, some Kurdish elements of the Syrian opposition, which continues to receive massive political and financial support from Ankara, have proposed the establishment of an autonomous Kurdish region in Syria.

This could pose a serious security risk to Turkey since, sooner or later, the Kurds of Turkey will most probably try to follow suit.

The recent meetings between Turkish officials and prominent Kurdish political figures from Iraq were held to address this general concern, and Ankara is actually trying to use the Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) of Iraq to control the popular movements of the Kurds in Syria.

The situation in neighboring Syria is becoming a major problem for Turkey, and it is becoming clear that Turkey must moderate its stance toward the Syrian government. Along these lines, Turkey’s reliance on Iraq as a partner in the Kurdish issue may provide the Iraqi government an opportunity to persuade Ankara that it should end its hostility toward Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. But we must wait and see if the AKP leaders are ready to revise their policy toward the Kurds in the face of the latest developments.

Siamak Kakayi is a political analyst and an expert on Turkey and Iraq based in Tehran.

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News ID 56170