Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 24
By Rufiz Hafizoglu - Trend:
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu's statement on helping "Peshmerga" (special military units), subordinate to the Kurdish administration of northern Iraq, to move to the city of Kobani from the territory of Turkey, was perceived ambiguously.
The leader of the National Action Party Dovlet Bakhcheli assessed the movement of "Peshmerga", which was earlier close to the PKK terrorist organization, through Turkey to Syria, as a serious threat to the country, while the Republican People's Party accused Ankara of non-assistance to Kobani's people.
Assisting the Peshmerga creates a desperate situation for Turkey regardless of the position from which one considers the events in the Syrian city of Kobani.
And in fact, Davutoglu's government is well aware that the countries with interests clashing in the region, want to make Turkey face the 'double choice'.
One of them is to send Turkish troops into Kobani and thus to drag Turkey into the Syrian 'maelstrom'. Another is to suspend the process of a democratic solution to the Kurdish problem, which began in 2009 by using Kobani's events. But this does not mean that the Turkish government is unable to control the situation.
Erdogan, as a prime minister, has managed to separate the issue of the PKK and the Kurdish problem.
The PKK was once indirectly acting as a "defender" of the Kurds in the country, but as a result of the government policies, the terrorist organization has been deprived of this "status".
The "Peshmerga corridor" into Kobani
The opening of a corridor for the Peshmerga into Kobani by the Turkish government comes as a result of the U.S. pressure on Turkey.
But, the Peshmerga's presence in Syria meets the interests of Turkey in the first place, at least because by letting the Peshmerga through its territory to the town of Kobani in Syria, Ankara is moving away from the danger of deploying its own troops.
The Peshmerga will go into Kobani through Turkey not in droves, but in groups of 20 people and unarmed.
Additionally, Turkey has demanded that all the data about the soldiers, who will be sent by the Kurdish administration in northern Iraq, should be given to its intelligence.
Naturally, Turkey's choice of assisting the Peshmerga could be evaluated positively.
However, the reason for a delay in the opening of a corridor into Kobani can be found in the words of an official, who said, "For us, the PYD (the Democratic Unity Party), the PKK (Kurdistan Workers' Party) and the IS (the Islamic State) are one and the same thing, they are all terrorists."
As for the Peshmerga, the statements repeatedly voiced by their Turkish representatives have stated that the Peshmerga are a part of the Iraqi army.
Turkey may create one-sided safe zone in Syria
Turkey is one of the country's that is negatively affected by developments in neighboring Iraq and Syria. The presence of 1.5 million Syrian and Iraqi refugees in Turkey's territory is a real threat to the country's government.
The official data says that Turkey has spent $4 billion on these refugees, which is not a small amount for a country paying special attention to strengthening its economy. Some Turkish officials even stated that the new flow of refugees from Iran and Syria may have severe consequences on the country.
Given that the ongoing clashes in Syria and Iraq will not stop soon, Turkey will prioritize the creation of a no-fly and buffer zone along its border.
It is highly likely that Turkey will by all means create a no-fly and buffer zone in Syria in the near future. Although the creation of a one-sided safe zone in the territory of a foreign state (for present in Syria) contradicts with international law, today's reality pushes Turkey to take steps other than 'by the rules'.
Rufiz Hafizoglu is the head of the Trend Arab News Service