As Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan stated in the newspaper Hurriyet, Turkey will not allow the establishment of a parallel state such as the one planned by the Kurdish Communities Union. “No one should expect our security forces to lay down their arms,” Erdogan said. The fight against the Kurds is a war to death, since in case of defeat Turkey will lose control over nearly half the country. It is already three decades this struggle has been going on in vain. Although claiming the contrary in words, Turkey has no outside support in this fight. Officially the PKK is considered a terrorist organization in the EU and the U.S., but Ankara has no benefit from this. Here a direct parallel with Hamas and Fatah suggests itself: once they were terrorist organizations too, but now represent the government of non-existent State of Palestine. The same may happen to the PKK, too. And the Turkish government is well aware of the danger behind strengthening Kurdish factor in the state, which has recently become more and more entangled in the search for identity. As we have said, the problem of identity is the most painful in today’s Turkey. Aware of this, the Kurds are trying to split the Turkish society, once feigning monolithic. But this monolithic nature was, in fact, fabricated: the countless wars of the Ottoman sultans brought to naught the nationality of nomads. Moreover, today’s Turks do not properly treat the Kurds, Armenians, Greeks, and Jews (even those Islamized). It turns out that due to geopolitical developments in the region the Kurds can achieve some of their goals. Although the establishment of independent Kurdistan is still a matter of future, the ball has already been set rolling in Diyarbakir. However, much in this issue depends on Iran, where the Kurdish party “PJAK” is declared outlawed. In order to spite Ankara, Tehran could change her stance in the Kurdish issue, thus granting some dividends to the Kurds. Neither should we neglect the factor of Northern Kurdistan in Iraq, from where, according to majority of the Kurds, the establishment of independent Kurdistan should begin.

Meanwhile, as reported by Kurdistan.ru, President of Kurdistan Masud Barzani has called for an end to violence between Turkey and Kurdish rebels, offering his mediation, following the meeting with Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Barzani’s visit to Turkey was the second highest official visit, since the PKK attacked Turkish military posts on October 19, killing 24 Turkish soldiers. Turkey then answered with a swift attack against the PKK. “I am for Kurdish rights,” Barzani said. “But to achieve those rights I can’t accept the killing of Turkish soldiers. Whether Turkey wants it or not, I would urge the PKK to end the war. That’s my personal belief.” According to Barzani, if PKK stops fighting, Turkey shall have no pretext for hostilities.

Regarding Turkish military operations against the PKK, Barzani said, “My experience tells me that no matter what advanced technology you may have, winning a guerrilla war is impossible.” “I know your army is strong,” he said, with reference to the Turkish military, “but who are you fighting? This isn’t a war on battlefields.”

Since April, Turkish police have arrested hundreds of Kurdish political activists in the Kurdish areas of Turkey, among them six elected MPs. The activists have been charged with having ties to the PKK.

Let us recall that the PKK has been seeking independence in south-eastern Turkey since 1984. To affect the government, it organizes attacks on police stations and military posts, as well as arranges assassinations of officials, and other terrorist acts. Its military bases are primarily located in the north of Iraq; therefore Baghdad gave permission to the Turkish authorities to conduct military operations here with the aim to destroy the terrorists. Over 40 thousand people have been killed in this conflict of more than twenty years.