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| Europe |
| German FM: independent Kurdistan would destabilize region |
| 2015-08-17 |
| [RUDAW.NET] German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said Sunday the potential declaration of an independent Kurdistan would destabilized the Middle East and intensifies political conflicts across the restive region. ... as opposed to the rock solidity the region now enjoys. In an interview with the Bild am Sonntag newspaper, Steinmeier said it would be better if Kurds stay with a unified Iraq rather than build their own independent state. He added that an independent Kurdistan would add more complication to conflicts in the region. Steinmeier went on to say Kurdish Peshmerga forces now battling the Islamic State ...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allaharound with every other sentence, but to hear the pols talk they're not reallyMoslems.... , or ISIS, need to receive more aid from Western countries. He stressed the need of humanitarian assistance for refugees and displaced people in the Kurdistan region. He said Germany understands why ...the only place on the face of the earth that misses the Ottoman Empire.... has recently resumed its military operations and aerial attack on the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK). He emphasized that even after withdrawing German Patriot missile batteries from Turkey, Germany won't stop supporting Ankara. "Germany feels a responsibility towards Turkey's security in the region," said Steinmeier. He said ISIS is poses a serious threat to Turkey's borders, adding that the PKK has also launched attacks against Turkish security forces. The German Defense Ministry announced Saturday plans to withdraw its Patriot Missiles from the Turkish-Syrian border. The move comes after heated debate in German society over Turkey's stance towards NATO ...the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. A collection of multinational and multilingual and multicultural armed forces, all of differing capabilities, working toward a common goal by pulling in different directions... and the West. Starting in 2013, the Patriot Missile issue had caused heated debate in Germany. Many Germans oppose the NATO mission, despite Ankara being a member state, viewing Turkey as not doing its part against the Death Eaters. |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #9 What doesn't destabilize the Middle East? Give the Kurds a chance the Germans have been wrong before. |
| Posted by: Airandee 2015-08-17 19:14 |
| #8 As Christians flee a region, violence escalates. A Kurdistan will bring forth a multi-cultural society in that area, but not peace throughout the ME. |
| Posted by: Ebbomosh Hupemp2664 2015-08-17 14:52 |
| #7 The Kurds have been the most stable factor in the region concerning the rest. |
| Posted by: newc 2015-08-17 14:03 |
| #6 Which would likely explain the West's half-hearted attempts to fight the Islamic State; they're waiting for it to mature into a real Caliphate. |
| Posted by: Pappy 2015-08-17 11:04 |
| #5 So by the FM's (egregious) logic the Caliphate would be 'stabilizing'. |
| Posted by: Procopius2k 2015-08-17 10:38 |
| #4 how many Turks work in Germany? Millions? According to the CIA World Factbook, Germany's population of 80,854,408 is 2.4% Turkish, or about 1.94 million. Many of them must now be second or third generation, the descendants of the guest workers who came since 1961 and settled. It's safe to assume that more than half are women and children, many of whom do not have paying jobs, so less than 1 million are working there. On the other hand, Wikipedia says the data, such as it is, can be sliced and diced in a number of different ways. 1.55 million permanent residents of Germany hold Turkish citizenship vs. 840,000 Turks who have taken German citizenship. There are 2.998 million Germans who have at least one Turkish parent, or 3.7% of the population. Apparently 1/5th to 1/4th of Turkish nationals are Kurds. Lots more here. |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2015-08-17 09:48 |
| #3 Q: How long has Germany been playing kissyface with Turkey? A: Actually, before there was a Turkey. And how many Turks work in Germany? Millions? |
| Posted by: Clomp Omagum5939 2015-08-17 07:56 |
| #2 This is more destabilized than it already is. Kinda the way reuniting Germany destabilized European politics. What he's actually concerned about is, they've already bribed people, and those may not be able to make good on the bribes if the power shifts. |
| Posted by: ed in texas 2015-08-17 07:26 |
| #1 It's simply fascinating how all the advanced thinkers---the ones whose belief that Arabs of "Palestine" must have their own state is a self-evident fact---are opposed to Kurdish self-determination. |
| Posted by: g(r)omgoru 2015-08-17 02:48 |