PKK disarmament to take a few months in Iraq, Turkiye ruling party says
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Arab News
7 hours ago
- Arab News
‘If Lebanon doesn't hurry up and get in line, everyone around them will,' Tom Barrack tells Arab News
NEW YORK: US special envoy Tom Barrack has warned that Lebanon risks falling further behind in regional realignments if it fails to act swiftly on political and security reforms, particularly regarding Hezbollah. Speaking to Arab News, Barrack said: 'If Lebanon doesn't hurry up and get in line, everyone around them will.' He said central to Lebanon's recovery would be the disarming Hezbollah's military wing, which Washington classifies as a terrorist organization. He also emphasized growing American impatience with the country's political inertia and its inability to address mounting economic and institutional collapse. While Barrack acknowledged the group's dual role in Lebanese politics, he stressed that disarmament must be a Lebanese-led effort involving both the government and Hezbollah's political leadership. 'The process has to start with the Council of Ministers,' he said. 'Hezbollah the political party has to agree to that.' Barrack revealed that the US has facilitated indirect negotiations between Lebanon and Israel, despite legal barriers, and said empowering the Lebanese Armed Forces would be key to a peaceful disarmament process, adding: 'We're not going to do it in a civil war.' While praising Beirut's recent response to a disarmament proposal as 'spectacular,' Barrack criticized Lebanon's political culture as one of 'deny, detour and deflect,' warning that without reform, the system risks extinction. 'They're satisfied with the status quo—until they're not,' he said. Barrack expressed cautious optimism about getting Hezbollah to disarm, saying: 'I think this government is ready. We're saying, you want our help? Here it is. We're not going to dictate to you. If you don't want it—no problem, we'll go home.'
Arab News
8 hours ago
- Arab News
How Turkiye views Azerbaijan-Russia tensions
In recent days, relations between Azerbaijan and Russia have entered a new phase of unprecedented tension due to several incidents and shifting geopolitical dynamics in the South Caucasus. These tensions hold significant implications not only for Baku and Moscow, but also for Turkiye, a close ally of Azerbaijan and a country that has long walked a fine line in its relations with Russia, despite being a NATO member. Ankara's response to the escalating tension between Baku and Moscow seems to be strategically measured. Turkiye has urged restraint from both sides and expressed its concern over the broader instability in the South Caucasus. However, beneath these calls for calm lie well-calculated foreign policy considerations based on Turkiye's regional ambitions and relations with both sides. Understanding how Ankara perceives the tensions between Baku and Moscow and what it means for its foreign policy in the region is important. The tensions between Russia and Azerbaijan have been simmering beneath the surface for some time but have peaked recently. Azerbaijan's victory in the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh war has fueled its ambitions and encouraged President Ilham Aliyev, who has been in power since 2003, to pursue a foreign policy that is less reliant on Moscow. Three significant events have led Russia to lose its previously held influence on Azerbaijan and the broader South Caucasus: Azerbaijan's Nagorno-Karabakh victory, the prolonged war in Ukraine, and its loss of a key ally in Syria. These developments have also shifted the balance of power in the South Caucasus, with Azerbaijan positioning itself as a more autonomous actor, Armenia repairing its ties with both Ankara and Baku, and Turkiye filling the vacuum created by the diminishing Russian and Iranian influence. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, returning from a visit to Azerbaijan last week, said to reporters aboard his flight that Turkiye's 'greatest wish' is to ensure these 'unfortunate incidents' do not lead to 'irreparable damage' in Baku-Moscow relations. His statement reflected Ankara's cautious approach that aims to maintain its close strategic relationship with both countries. Turkiye's relationship with Azerbaijan is often described as 'one nation, two states' due to the cultural and political bonds between them. During the 2020 war, Turkiye offered support to Azerbaijan, although only doing so carefully to avoid provoking Russia directly. On the other hand, Turkiye and Russia, despite having differences on some regional issues, have maintained a balanced relationship. They have found ways to compartmentalize their ties, from energy cooperation to arms purchases, such as Turkiye's acquisition of the Russian S-400 missile system, despite Western countries' unease. The compartmentalized nature of their relationship was cemented through the close personal ties between Erdogan and President Vladimir Putin. The tensions between Russia and Azerbaijan have been simmering beneath the surface for some time but have peaked recently Dr. Sinem Cengiz Given this personalized and interest-oriented relationship, Turkiye cannot pick a side in this situation. Rather, it can rely on its relationship with both sides to avoid any instability in the South Caucasus that may threaten its regional goals. To maintain the status quo, Turkiye is now pushing for a peace deal between Armenia and Azerbaijan. On Thursday, Aliyev and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan met in Abu Dhabi, a meeting that could be considered a turning point for the balances in the South Caucasus. There are also reports that Turkiye is working on a tentative agreement with Armenia and Azerbaijan on the long-debated Zangezur Corridor, which — if concluded — would mark a watershed moment in the region. Ankara views the corridor as part of a 'geoeconomic revolution,' in the words of Erdogan. Unsurprisingly, this corridor is viewed with concern by both Russia and Iran, which fear being sidelined. Meanwhile, some former Azerbaijani officials have publicly called for the establishment of a Turkish military base in Azerbaijan. While no official confirmation has been forthcoming, such statements signal that Baku is seeking to bolster its military capabilities and infrastructure, most likely with Turkish support. This will certainly annoy Moscow; however, Turkiye is likely to be careful not to appear too assertive. Unlike Western countries — which seem to view the Baku-Moscow tensions as an opportunity to further isolate Russia and bring Azerbaijan closer to the Western sphere — Turkiye prefers a balancing act that avoids isolating Russia and prevents Azerbaijan from taking bolder steps. This is because Ankara sees there is too much at stake to risk a complete rupture between Baku and Moscow. Unlike the West, Turkiye is more focused on economic integration in the South Caucasus, which is not only part of its neighborhood but also a geopolitical corridor vital to its interests. I assume Ankara is also well aware that, despite the rhetorical escalation and retaliatory actions, Azerbaijan and Russia are unlikely to completely sever their ties. Their economic and regional interdependence requires maintaining relationships despite mutual suspicion and distrust. Also, what we see is that much of the tension is largely influenced by the personalities of the two leaders. Certainly, incidents such as last December's shooting down of an Azerbaijani civilian plane by Russia, which killed 38 people, and tit-for-tat arrests have exposed deep-seated tensions that will not be easily repaired. However, the past shows that severe rifts can be overcome. For example, consider the 2015 incident when Turkiye downed a Russian military jet near the Syrian border. Turkish-Russian bilateral relations hit rock bottom in the wake of the incident, but within a year the two sides had restored ties and even launched the Astana peace process for Syria. A similar trajectory could emerge between Baku and Moscow, with current tensions giving way to a pragmatic detente. • Dr. Sinem Cengiz is a Turkish political analyst who specializes in Turkiye's relations with the Middle East. X: @SinemCngz
Asharq Al-Awsat
12 hours ago
- Asharq Al-Awsat
Kurdish PKK Militants Burn Weapons in Iraq to Launch Disarmament
Thirty Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) militants burned their weapons at the mouth of a cave in northern Iraq on Friday, marking a symbolic but significant step toward ending a decades-long insurgency against Türkiye. Footage from the ceremony showed the fighters, half of them women, queuing to place AK-47 assault rifles, bandoliers and other guns into a large grey cauldron. Flames later engulfed the black gun shafts pointed to the sky, as Kurdish, Iraqi and Turkish officials watched nearby, Reuters reported. The PKK, locked in conflict with the Turkish state and outlawed since 1984, decided in May to disband, disarm and end its separatist struggle after a public call to do so from its long-imprisoned leader Abdullah Ocalan. After a series of failed peace efforts, the new initiative could pave the way for Ankara to end an insurgency that has killed over 40,000 people, burdened the economy and wrought deep social and political divisions in Türkiye and the wider region. President Tayyip Erdogan said he hoped the PKK's dissolution would bolster Turkish security and regional stability. "May God grant us success in achieving our goals on this path we walk for the security of our country, the peace of our nation, and the establishment of lasting peace in our region," he said on X. Friday's ceremony was held at the entrance of the Jasana cave in the town of Dukan, 60 km (37 miles) northwest of Sulaymaniyah in the Kurdistan region of Iraq's north. The fighters, in beige military fatigues, were flanked by four commanders including senior PKK figure Bese Hozat, who read a statement in Turkish declaring the group's decision to disarm. "We voluntarily destroy our weapons, in your presence, as a step of goodwill and determination," she said, before another commander read the same statement in Kurdish. Helicopters hovered overhead, with dozens of Iraqi Kurdish security forces surrounding the mountainous area, a Reuters witness said. The ceremony was attended by Turkish and Iraqi intelligence figures, officials of Iraq's Kurdistan regional government and senior members of Türkiye's pro-Kurdish DEM party - which also played a key role this year facilitating the PKK's disarmament decision. It was unclear when further handovers would take place. A senior Turkish official said the arms handover marked an "irreversible turning point" in the peace process, while another government source said ensuing steps would include the legal reintegration of PKK members into society in Türkiye and efforts to heal communities and promote reconciliation. The PKK has been based in northern Iraq after being pushed well beyond Türkiye's southeastern frontier in recent years. Türkiye's military carries out regular strikes on PKK bases in the region and established several military outposts there. The end of NATO member Türkiye's conflict with the PKK could have consequences across the region, including in neighboring Syria where the United States is allied with Syrian Kurdish forces that Ankara deems a PKK offshoot. Washington and Ankara want those Kurds to quickly integrate with Syria's security structure, which has been undergoing reconfiguration since the fall in December of autocratic President Bashar al-Assad. PKK disarmament could add to this pressure, analysts say. The PKK, DEM and Ocalan have all called on Erdogan's government to address Kurdish demands for more rights in regions where Kurds form a majority, particularly Türkiye's southeast where the insurgency was concentrated. In a rare online video published on Wednesday, Ocalan - whose large image was shown at the weapons ceremony - also urged Türkiye's parliament to set up a commission to oversee disarmament and manage the broader peace process. Ankara has taken steps toward forming the commission, while the DEM and Ocalan have said that legal assurances and certain mechanisms were needed to smooth the PKK's transition into democratic politics. Omer Celik, spokesman for Erdogan's AK Party, said the ceremony marked a first step toward full disarmament and a "terror-free Türkiye", adding this must be completed "in a short time". Erdogan has said the disarmament will enable the rebuilding of Türkiye's southeast. Türkiye spent nearly $1.8 trillion over the past five decades combating terrorism, Finance Minister Mehmet Simsek has said.
