Washington DC Kurdish Conference: The only thing on the agenda was the Kobane resistance

01.10.2014 Vatan
Translated by: Turgay BAYINDIR /
Orjinal Metin (tr-9/28/2014)

It cannot be said that the world is interested a lot in the Kobane resistance that is going on in Syria; however, those who are interested in it know the following:
1.  The first serious resistance to IS(IS) attacks in Iraq and Syria until now has been on display in Kobane.
2.  There is a limit to the power of the people of Kobane and those who came to support them; they have been using small arms to respond to the heavy artillery attack by IS(IS).
3.  The YPG, which has been defending Kobane, needs heavy artillery. However, the international coalition led by the USA which has decided to arm regional forces against IS(IS) has not taken any steps so far.
4.  The coalition has been bombing the IS(IS) and al-Nusra Front sites in Syria but as of the writing of this article, there has not been any assaults on the IS(IS) forces surrounding Kobane, and the rumors regarding such an attack have not been verified.
5.  Surrounded on three sides by IS(IS), Kobane’s only way of communication with the outside world is through the town of Suruç in Turkey. Yet Ankara is only allowing border crossing for humanitarian aid and has not accepted the demands to allow the transit of arms and warriors.

When looked at from this angle, the second Kurdish Conference organized in Washington DC by HDP had come at a very convenient time. However, Friday morning, on the way from the hotel to the National Press Club where the conference was to take place, HPD’s co-president Selahattin Demirtaş’s spirits were quite low. He had just talked to people in Kobane and learned that IS(IS) had got very close to the city.

Demirtaş also said that they had not obtained results from the talks they had so far conducted in Washington DC. In other words, the HDP delegation did not leave the US capital with much hope regarding the arming of Kobane resistance with heavy artillery and supporting them with air strikes.

Gloomy atmosphere

We can say that the conference took place in a gloomy atmosphere due to the apprehensions caused by the concern for Kobane. First, Salih Muslim, co-president of PYD, having been unable to obtain a visa, joined the conference through Skype and described the dramatic picture that has been unraveling and made a call to the international community for urgent help.

In other sessions too, whatever the subject, the topic soon reverted to Kobane. There was particular emphasis on the fact that the resolution process in Turkey is directly connected to the fate of the Kobane resistance. The American experts who participated in the conference as well as the Kurdish delegates stated that the main reason for the international community’s unwillingness to provide support for Kobane is Ankara’s reservations on the issue. In reality, it appeared that the Ankara government’s determined and persistent stand not to join the international coalition had opened a door to PKK and other groups following a similar line. First of all, YPG in Syria and partially HPG in Iraq could potentially be included in the “regional forces” that would be given support in their fight against IS(IS). Even though not directly, such a co-operation would be possible indirectly through the route of the Kurdistan Regional Government in Iraq.

Erdoğan changed the course of the events

However, just as the HDP delegation was conducting their talks in Washington DC, everything seems to have changed with President Erdoğan’s declaration in New York that they are ready to offer any kind of support for the coalition.

At the moment we are face to face with a very complicated situation. To expand upon it with a couple of observations:
-  Regardless of differences of opinion between them, the strategic partnership of the US and Turkey is very valuable to both sides.
-  Similarly, the US and, undoubtedly other NATO member states will not want to risk losing the support that Turkey could offer.
-  Nevertheless, it is clear that the international coalition cannot leave Kobane to the mercy of IS(IS). Therefore, we can safely say that the option of air strikes against IS(IS) positions is still on the table regardless of whether Ankara is happy with it or not.
-  However, as long as PKK continues to keep armed forces in Turkey and leaves the option of armed resistance open, it appears difficult for Ankara to give the green light to arming YPG (and to a certain extent the peshmerga in Iraq) with heavy artillery due to the possibility that they might be used in Turkey.

We will continue with the discussion of the Kurdish Conference in Washington DC and, through it, the Kobane resistance tomorrow.

Destek olmak ister misiniz?
Doğru haber, özgün ve özgür yorum ihtiyacı
Bugün dünyada gazeteciler birer aktivist olmaya zorlanıyor. Bu durum, kutuplaşmanın alabildiğine keskin olduğu Türkiye'de daha fazla karşımıza çıkıyor. Halbuki gazeteci, elinden geldiğince, doğru haber ile özgün ve özgür yorumla toplumun tüm kesimlerine ulaşmaya çalışmalı ve bu yolla, kutuplaşmayı artırma değil azaltmayı kendine hedef edinmeli. Devamı için

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