REPLY TO “ERDOGAN'S WAR AND US MYOPIA”

I refer to the article "Erdogan's war and US myopia" by Mr. Taj Hashmi, which was published in The Daily Star on August 3, 2015.

The article unfortunately carries a number of false accusations as well as baseless propositions. Hence, for the sake of informing the readers of The Daily Star of the actual situation and the reasoning behind the Turkish military operation against the terrorist organisation, namely PKK, I feel obliged to bring to your kind attention the following:

Turkey has time and again reiterated its determination to fight terrorism in all its manifestations. Turkey has never been a safe haven for any terrorist organization, including DEASH (ISIS). On the contrary DEASH had committed many terrorist attacks in Turkey, the last of which was on July 20, when 32 innocent Turkish civilians were killed in the town of Suruç. Following that, Turkey immediately started operations against DEASH. 

However, while Turkey has been fighting DEASH, PKK exploited this opportunity to increase its terrorist attacks. Until today, 16 security personnel have been killed, 2 have been abducted, 39 of them wounded. Also, two civilians have lost their lives and 13 civilians have been wounded. 

PKK has also attacked pipelines, railways, electricity infrastructure and taken security and health personnel hostage.

Attacking PKK targets has thus become an obligation. This is about maintaining public order and guaranteeing the fundamental rights and liberties of our own citizens, including the right to live.

Turkey has kept its patience against PKK's belligerence for some time because of the ongoing reconciliation process, despite the fact that only in 2015, PKK conducted around 2,173 terrorist attacks in Turkey. Ongoing operations against PKK do not in any way mean that Turkey has given up the reconciliation process. However, the government's efforts should be reciprocated by goodwill not by terrorist attacks. Unfortunately, it seems that the successful election result of the HDP has given the PKK a false self-confidence and terrorist incidents started increasing after the elections. PKK's continued attacks will only derail the reconciliation process.

A terrorist organisation cannot be cleared from its terrorist nature, just because it is fighting another terrorist organisation.

Our operations against the PKK terrorists will continue until this terrorist organisation ends its attacks in Turkey. 

The writer is Turkish Ambassador to Bangladesh.