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Behind the Iraq Protests
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Turkey, Iraq, and Oil
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Sunni Reachout to the Shia Crescent
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Iraq: Playing the Sectarian Crisis Card
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Special Report
Iraq: One Year After Withdrawal
The U.S. withdrew one year ago today — if anyone in Iraq cares to notice.
(Page 3 of 3)
Yet according to Heuvelen’s report, the man responsible for reviewing the alleged pending deal between the KRG and the Turkish government is the Energy Minister Taner Yildiz, who — as journalist Wladimir van Wilgenburg notes — has indicated to Turkish newspaper Hurriyet Daily News that no energy deal will be signed without the approval of the Iraqi central government, which would be fiercely opposed to any deal between the KRG and Ankara without prior consultation of Baghdad.
In addition, Turkey has yet to indicate support for any kind of independent Kurdish entity — given the problem of its own restive Kurdish population in the southeast — and despite the generally poor relations with Baghdad, is still committed to the idea of a unified Iraq. In truth, much of the current speculation could be a repeat of the exaggerated media hype in the summer as regards energy negotiations between Turkey and the KRG.
In short, therefore, as leader of the opposition “Gorran” movement in the KRG put it to the Turkish newspaper az-Zaman in a recent interview: “It is the dream of all Kurds to have an independent state. However, one has to take into account the realities of the situation and realize that there is still a lot of work that needs to be done before we can start thinking about independence. So, as it currently stands, I believe it will be some time before we can start considering this realistically.”
To conclude, it can be seen that internal politics are generally not given their due when it comes to assessing events inside Iraq. Foreign influence is greatly overplayed, and it is clear how personal rivalries have become deeply intertwined with major issues like corruption.
In general, there is also a tendency to view things too much through the ethno-sectarian paradigm — something that also gives rise to excessive sensationalism. This has been most apparent in the coverage of trends in violence as well as tensions between the KRG and the Iraqi central government. While instability is a great concern, Iraq is hardly “unraveling.”
About the Author
Aymenn Jawad Al-Tamimi is a Shillman-Ginsburg Fellow at the Middle East Forum, and a student at Brasenose College, Oxford University. His website is http://www.aymennjawad.org.
Letter to the Editor View all comments (7) | Leave a comment
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Dimitry_Aleksandrovich| 12.18.12 @ 1:00PM
Basically what we managed to do in Iraq is to topple the Hussein family and their Baathist allies grip on power and hand the country over to the pro-Iranian Shia majority. Something that would have happened naturally sooner or later. Our quickening of this process led to the slaughter of untold thousands of Iraqis and thousands of U.S. soldiers and Marines. Our quickening of Hussein's demise also led to the ethnic cleansing of Iraqi Christians (Assyrian, Chaldean and Armenian) at the hands of Islamists. Was it worth it? I don't know ask Dick Cheney and the corporate heads of Halliburton or the Western Oil firms that got contracts after Saddam was taken out of the picture.
As for the Iraqi Christians who left guess where many found refuge? Assad's Syria.
Mike W| 12.18.12 @ 2:25PM
Well said. Also, on top of those gifts, the Iraq war also gave us the Democrat takeover of the House and Senate in 2006 and Obama in 2008. I think W was a secret Democrat.
Al Brooks, BLEEDINGHEART | 12.18.12 @ 4:39PM
Then there's Ashcanistan: you don't actually think we are going to leave in '14, do you?
cicero| 12.18.12 @ 2:53PM
Of all the countries in the Middle East, Iraq seemedd to have the best chance of going from a dictatorship to a democracy. This was based on the educational level of the population, the religious diversity, and the economy, which was more vibrant than the others. The problem now appears to be that they are losing the edge they may have had.
The first mistake was allowing Al Sadr to live. He should have been dispatched at the first opportunity, once it became apparent that he was more interested in fomenting civil war than helping his country. The second mistake was not giving the Maliki government cover so as to allow the American military to maintain a presence.
The main game now for the political class is to survive the transition alive, and maye wind up on the top of the heap. There is a real possibility, however, that the crazies will continue to blow people up, and eventually instigate a civil war that will end up with sharia law, and one more gem in the caliphate diadem. The fact that it will take them all back to the 12th century worries them not.
obadiah| 12.18.12 @ 8:01PM
with multiple strong power centers, iraq sounds a lot healthier than egypt (brotherhood or death) or syria (each against all). the historical demon is into irony.
ginger5010| 12.19.12 @ 3:56AM
If you think Adam`s story is impossible,, last week my aunt's step son basically made the small fortune of $7111 workin a fifteen hour week in their apartment and there roomate's mother`s neighbour has been doing this for nine months and easily made more than $7111 part-time On there laptop. use the instructions at this site, Great70.c om
jbd2| 12.20.12 @ 12:50PM
Who could imagine ??
We bomb the crap out of their country, make a mess and do a poor job of repairing it. Then we leave and think they will be our friends ..
(Heavy sarcasm)