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Turkey Wants U.S. to Implement No-Fly Zone
by John M. Curtis
(310) 204-8700
Copyright
October 10, 2014
All Rights Reserved.
Asking the U.S. and NATO to enforce a no-fly zone in
Southern Turkey, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan got a cold shoulder from
the West committing more military resources to battle the Islamic State of Iraq
and Syria [ISIS]. Before his reelection Aug. 11 for another six-year term
as Turkish president, Erdogan slammed U.S. Mideast policies, especially the U.S.
support of Israel. Pentagon officials led by Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel
asked Turkey to commit more than lip serve to dealing with ISIS, causing an
alarming border crisis with thousands of Kurds and Syrians fleeing for safety
inside the Turkish border. Hagel wants Erdogan to allow the U.S. to use a
military base in Turkey to launch air strikes on ISIS. Pentagon officials
want Turkey to commit more military resources to battling ISIS. Ankara
hasn’t been happy about the U.S. directly arming Iraq’s Kurds, a bitter enemy of
Turkey’s efforts to control its Sothern border.
After eight years of war in Iraq, Obama decided enough-was-enough, ending U.S.
involvement Dec. 15, 2011. Turkey—and many other Middle East
countries—blame the U.S for toppling Saddam Hussein April 10, 2003, opening up a
sectarian war between Shiites and Sunnis and destabilizing the region.
While starting a bombing campaign against ISIS Aug. 8, there’s no evidence to
date that air strikes alone can rid ISIS from the region. Former British
Prime Minister Tony Blair and other Mideast experts doubt that bombing ISIS can
return lost territory to Iraq and Syria. Obama was acutely aware of the
U.S. doing the heavy lifting, despite promises of a broad coalition, including
Arab states, of going after ISIS. With Turkey’s long hostile battle with
armed elements of the Kurdish Workers’ Party [PKK], Turkey wants no part of
Obama’s plan to directly arm the Kurds. Erdogan still harbors grudges from
the PKK’s defense of Kurdish rights.
Erdogan rejects pleas from the Pentagon to commit ground troops to halt the
ISIS advance that has created the current crisis on the Turkish border.
While Hagel would like Turks to do more to challenge ISIS, it’s clear that
Turkey has no intent of doing much more than defending its own border.
Erdogan insists Obama do more to topple Syrian President Bashar al-Assad,
something vehemently opposed by Russia. Russia has national secutity
interests in protecting its Mediterranean Tartus naval on the Syrian coast.
Obama reluctantly started targeted ISIS bombing after ISIS beheaded U.S.
journalists James Foley and Stephen Sotloff but has not committed to ground
troops other than limited Special Forces. Most experts agree that Iraq and
Kurdish forces can’t detach ISIS from Iraq and Syria, pushing the White House to
put boots on the ground. Few experts expect the beleaguered Pesmerga Kurds
or what’s left of the Iraq military to make a dent.
Obama still puts his faith in the Iraq military and Kurds to do what looks like
the impossible task for ridding ISIS from seized Kurdish territory. As far
as Erdogan’s concerned, he’s not going to help the Kurds to battle Islamic
militants, no matter how it impacts the Turkish border. Erdogan has a real
agenda when it comes to the Kurds. Instead of looking at the best options
to rid the region of ISIS, Erdogan’s still fighting the old battle with the PKK.
U.S. officials have come to realize that ridding the region of al-Assad is low
on the priority list. Obama hasn’t faced the music that getting rid of
ISIS will require U.S. ground troops. If Barack really believes that ISIS
must go, he shouldn’t go halfway with only air strikes. Whatever Turkey
does or doesn’t do, the military must protect U.S. national security, not worry
about the human or financial toll. Obama must reassess the current mission
and decide the next step to complete it.
Creating a no-fly zone in Northern Iraq and Southern Turkey would come at great
cost to the U.S. and do almost nothing to defeat ISIS in the region. Obama
correctly sees the mission as not getting rid of al-Assad but defeating ISIS.
Erdogan has his own agenda and history with the Kurds, preventing him from
seeing the big picture, backing the Kurds’ battle with ISIS. Obama can’t
have it both ways with ISIS: Launching U.S. air strikes and expecting the
battered Kurdish Peshmerga fighters or Iraqi military to get rid of ISIS.
Recognizing ISIS as a gathering threat to U.S. national security should be
enough for Obama to order the expedient path with winning the fight:
Including using U.S ground troops. However the U.S. degrades ISIS with air
strikes, the terror group will figure out another way to hand on to power.
Obama must decide with U.S. allies the best path to completing the mission
without pandering to Turkey or any other country.
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