On July 28, the pipeline carrying KRG oil to the Turkish Mediterranean port of Ceyhan was sabotaged and the PKK took responsibility for it. That prompted a harsh statement from the KRG and PKK officials later saying they did not know the pipeline was carrying KRG's oil.
The KRG has not condemned the Turkish attacks on the PKK inside Iraqi Kurdistan's territory with the exception of the Zargali raid.
Many find Turkey's new approach with regard to the PKK perplexing.
Kenneth Pollack, a Middle East expert and fellow at the Washington-based Brooking Institution, told Al-Monitor that it is difficult to read the mind of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan when it comes to the Kurdish issue and the PKK.
"It's clear that playing the anti-Kurdish card was a critical element in helping Erdogan win the elections. But what we don’t know is how he is going to come out of the elections," Pollack said.
"Is he going to decide, 'OK, I did what I needed to do to win the elections; now I can go back to the peace process,' or is he going to decide, 'Well, that was a winning formula for me and I should just keep it going,'" he added.
"The reality is if Erdogan continues to go to war with its Kurdish population," Pollack said, "it is going to make it incredibly hard for the KRG. How on earth can the KRG cozy up to Ankara when it’s going to war with its own Kurdish populations?"
(PKK image via Shutterstock)
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