Which option is better ?

Here a question springs to mind: Couldn’t the US have foreseen such developments? In other words, does the Bush administration really see these events as unexpected? The fact is that right now the US is only trying to buy time. What can Turkey do? Let’s first say what Turkey shouldn’t do: Our government shouldn’t send its troops to Iraq now, since there is such clear, strong opposition from various Iraqi groups.

But what are our options under these circumstances?

Our first option is to drop our deployment decision entirely. ‘If Turkish troops aren’t needed or wanted in Iraq, then we won’t send them there,’ we should say. However, our government should be firm on this issue and after making such a statement, should never let its attitude waver. If the government decides to give up the deployment, the Justice and Development Party (AKP) will be relieved of a very heavy domestic burden as well as a highly controversial international issue. Kurdish groups and Muslim countries alike would probably hail such a move. If the US denounces our decision, we can easily say, ‘We did our best, but you failed.’

But now, let’s take a look at the issue from a different perspective: Why does Turkey want to deploy its troops to Iraq? Aren’t our main objectives as follows: to crack down on the Kurdish movement in northern Iraq, which aims at establishing an independent state, and to protect the rights and freedoms of Iraq’s Turkmen population as well as to contribute to Iraqi reconstruction? If Turkey forsakes such an active stance, it will very likely end up being in a considerably weaker position in the region.

The second option is to wait and see. We can continue negotiations with Washington to decide on the issue in line with the future developments. During this period, both the US and the Governing Council might place new conditions in front of us. However, our government can also lobby more actively to persuade Washington on a number of critical issues concerning our troops’ mission.

The second option seems to me the more rational one.”