Former Pentagon employee Rubin: Barzani selling arms to PKK
Güncelleme Tarihi:
According to statements made by former Pentagon employee Michael Rubin, the US government would oppose any possible action to be taken by Turkey in Northern Iraq against PKK forces there. Rubin, who compares Mesud Barzani to the Lebanese Hizbollah leader Hasan Nasrallah, says "The Kurdish Democratic Party is sheltering the PKK in its own region, and is selling it weapons at a high price."
Rubin spoke to a Hurriyet representative in the US capital following his return from a recent trip to Iraq about his observations from Washington, DC on Mesud Barzani's tactics:
"Mesud Barzani gets everything he wants from Washington. He knows well how to use the US. And that's why President Bush looks on him warmly." According to Rubin, the Kurdish federation leader has been successful in insisting to the US authorities that "We are better allies than Turkey."
Rubin also told Hurriyet that he thought Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's stance on both Hamas and Israel foreign policy had "weakened Turkey's hand," and underscored also that he thought that current US Ambassador to Ankara, Ross Wilson, had no effect or power in Washington, DC. Contrary to this, Rubin told Hurriyet that he thought former US Ambassador Edelman had much clout, and was forced to leave before his tenure was up due to "events in Ankara." Said Rubin, "Wilson is a cocktail ambassador." Edelman is now the "number three" man in the Pentagon, and had become the target of the Islamic press in Turkey. Sources also report he was unable for six weeks running to get an appointment from Prime Minister Erdogan.
Turkey's current stance on Israel's fight on terror weakening its hand
Continuing on the subject of the AKP-led government's stance on Israel, Rubin said Turkey's current position has led to an erasure of support from Jewish led lobbies in Washington. Tying this to the subject of Erdogan's purported desire to face the PKK forces in Northern Iraq, Rubin said "Before Turkey enters into a struggle in Northern Iraq, the US will resist, and will condemn it. If Tayyip Erdogan reacts negatively to Israel's attempts to fight terror, how convincing will Turkey's insistance that they fight the PKK be?"