British Newspaper: Turkey considers Kurdistan Region as its natural economic extension

Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) The British Financial Times Newspaper stated that Turkey considers Kurdistan Region as a natural extension to its economy against the interest of the Iraqi government.

In its article posted on Wednesday, the News agency stated “By striking a framework deal for buying oil stakes from the regional authorities of Iraq’s Kurdish north, Turkey has lifted the veil on a grand economic strategy to match its rapprochement with the hitherto separatist Kurdistan Workers party (PKK).”

“Turkish leaders have made clear that they see northern Iraq as the natural extension of Turkey’s economy. The transformation that has helped sweep prime minister Recep Tayyib Erdogan and the Justice and Development party (AKP) to three election victories, as well as the region’s political turmoil, have tilted the stakes in Ankara’s decade-long conflict with its Kurdish citizens. Hence Erdogan’s seeming willingness to engage in talks with the PKK and to soften some of Turkey’s harsh constraints on Kurdish cultural expression and political rights,” the newspaper added, noting that “The peace dividend could be considerable. Reconciliation with the Kurds can strengthen Turkish political influence and economic clout in Kurdish areas across its borders, including with Syrian Kurds once Bashar al-Assad finally falls. Most of all, Ankara is solidifying its ties with an Iraqi Kurdistan moving closer to de facto economic and political independence, a process Ankara’s actions may well be accelerating.

“For Ankara, the political and economic logic of closer ties with the Iraqi Kurds is overwhelming. Turkey’s huge current account deficit largely matches its energy imports. By tapping more of the Iraqi oil and gas in Kurdistan RegionG territory, Turkey will gain in both price and security – it currently relies on Russia and Iran for gas. Turkey is playing a big game. But in a region whose post-Ottoman settlement has been unraveling since the second US invasion of Iraq, this game carries risks too,” the newspaper concluded.