Triple Dipping for the Kurd Issue

While cross-cross posting is likely crass, in the previous entry we were talking about the place of the Kurds in the current Iraq mix, and there is a post by Ron at MEJ from back in June that needs to be added in. This one covers a point which I sadly neglected - specifically that we have been using the Kurds for a long time, but that might not last. Ron's post covers a piece by Joseph Stroupe about the Kurds being the forgotten force in Iraq.

Hence, the regional political, diplomatic and even military mobilization of Kurdish forces, in an attempt to secure its own interests as the June 30 date for the handover of sovereignty to Iraq nears, appears to be under way. In verification of that fact, on June 7, Masoud Barzani of the Kurdistan Democratic Party and Jalal Talabani of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan threatened to pull out of the interim government unless the new United Nations Security Council resolution guarantees Kurdish autonomy and a veto over the direction of the interim government as promised in the draft interim constitution, which was very reluctantly signed by the Shi'ite representatives, but which is something the Shi'ite majority refuses to accept under any circumstances.

The Kurds are, from what I've seen, the most motivated, powerful, cohesive force in Iraq. At the moment, America is acting in what they could view as their best interests given current circumstances. If we suddenly move in a new direction that seems to be an obstacle to a free, independent Kurdistan, I wouldn't want to be the one standing in their way. The Kurds, when seen as an enemy, could easily make the current crop of "insurgents" look like the cabbage patch kids. Ron recognized this early on, and our military planners would do well to pay attention. If you don't want to support the establishment of Kurdistan, at the very least we should not look like we're standing in the way of it. Reason number 1,257,349 for us to get the fuck out of Iraq, and to do so NOW.