Yalman Haceroğlu writes: The axis of Turkish foreign policy towards Iraq between security and defense and diplomacy
Before drawing the strategic map of Turkish policy towards Iraq through the constants, determinants and calculations of Iraq in Turkish foreign policy, we must shed light on the imagination that contains sentences and phrases to explain the purpose of international policy.
Niccolò Machiavelli (1469-1527), an Italian thinker, philosopher and politician, says that the purpose of politics is to maintain the strength of the state and work to maintain and strengthen it, as these means based on the state’s foreign policy make it achieve internal strength and enable it to expand its authority abroad.
On the other hand, Friedrich Hegel (1770-1831), a German philosopher, believes that the state is based on the principle of the authority of the will, and from this standpoint the state must be independent in its external relations and not subject to the authority of another state. That is, it works according to what its will alone dictates.
By studying the opinions and theories of philosophers in politics and building an independent state, we must determine the components of building an independent state, and the source of these components is thought and politics, and in other words, political thought in building a state.
First, some researchers went to the point that politics is a person’s awareness of the creatures around him and the direct exchange of benefits with these creatures. Then this individuality turned into societalism through the development of human ideas that enabled him the ability and capacity to be an inventor. This transformation from individualism of relationship and benefit to collectivism of relationship and benefit was the role of politics. At each stage, man had to realize organisation and order, and since these two things require thought, which is the main driver of politics. Thus, man entered a new phase, which is the overlap between thought and politics.
The overlap between thought and politics includes three stages according to the aforementioned Italian thinker and philosopher, Niccolo Machiavelli: –
The first stage: the practical apply of political work
The second stage: the mental practice of political work, which includes writing, publishing ,literature, presentation and expression.
The third stage: Combining practical apply and mental practice, and led to output of balanced equation between thought and politics that appears and as two parallel lines. However, there remains a disparity in the mentality level between those who practice apply and in terms of the diversity of ideas. The mentality level will not disappear as long as there is a disparity in the culture possessed by politicians and as long as there is sufficient space for personal interests and whims in some souls and as long as there are mental illnesses that we can call political disability that may be apparent or hidden but appear in behavior.
In another context, Machiavelli believes that there are qualities and characteristics that the leader of the state or its prince must emulate, including shrewdness, insight and acumen that qualify the prince of the state to rely on his military strength without interacting with the outside and without resorting to additional forces or military assistance in terms of land, air and sea equipment and mechanisms.
When we examine these components in the nature of Turkish foreign policy and in Turkish internal affairs, we see it necessary to formulate these questions: Does the Turkish Republic have the authority of will? Is the Republic of Turkey an independent state in its foreign relations? How has Turkey been able to maintain its position of power? How do we view the overlap and interaction between politics and thought among Turkish politicians and those concerned with the Arab file, especially the Iraqi file, and the relationship between the intelligence establishment and the diplomatic establishment? To answer these questions, we will remove the curtain from the military and political scene in the Republic of Turkey, in addition to the statements of Turkish leaders, headed by Recep Tayyip Erdogan, President of the Republic of Turkey. We can consider 2023 the year of unprecedented Turkish defense industries. Turkey has sought with all its weight to standardize, fortify and strengthen its security forces in order to eliminate external dependency and create a long-term military defense vision through the use of modern technologies in military manufacturing and defense.
With its independent military industry, Turkey has produced the ATAK 2 attack helicopter, the combat drone and the jet trainer aircraft. Turkey was also not far from producing air defense systems and producing combat helicopter engines. In the field of armor, the Turkish military industry has produced the Tay tanks.
In the naval force, the largest Turkish ship, Anadolu TCG, entered the Turkish Navy’s arsenal.
The foreign policy of the Turkish state has adapted to the authority of the will in the state. Whereas the independent state is represented by its true entity through its foreign policy and not allowing interference in its internal affairs. The approach of foreign policy is the solid means to maintain the security and independence of the state by building a wall that prevents external interference in the internal affairs of that state. Here, Niccolo Machiavelli has proven his saying that the goal of politics is to maintain the power of the state and the expansion of its authority abroad, but in our opinion it must be in harmony with international decisions without affecting the sovereignty of the countries with which it deals diplomatically and politically.. These constants and determinants are among the priorities of Turkish foreign policy.
Turkey has recorded in its strategic file towards Iraq the pivotal points through an equation, which includes on the first side security and defense and on the second side of the equation there is intelligence diplomacy that forms foreign policy. That is, the Turkish Republic has drawn up a roadmap in its foreign policy towards Iraq since 2017, indicating the strongholds of the terrorist PKK organization on it in order to carry out military operations deep inside Iraqi territory in order to preserve its security and national borders.
Here the question arises, how did Turkey draw this military and political strategy together ?
Turkish foreign policy has focused on the two dimensions that included intelligence and diplomatic work since Dr. Hakan Fidan led the foreign policy portfolio in 2017, the head of the Turkish Intelligence Agency who assumed responsibility in 2010.
Fidan relied on applied intelligence to formulate Turkish foreign policy.
On the other hand, Hakan Fidan drew a foreign policy based on intelligence information. This is the practical apply of political work that constitutes the first stage in the overlap between thought and politics mentioned above, as he practiced political work in the Turkish presidency as an advisor and a foreign worker in NATO and his membership in the International Atomic Energy Agency and before all this his work as an officer in the Turkish army. Fidan also possesses the mental practice of political work through his writings and theses for obtaining master’s and doctoral degrees, and this is the second stage of the overlap between thought and politics, as Fidan combined political and mental work.
As a result of Hakan Fidan’s intelligence background and his extensive knowledge of Iraqi affairs in light of the experience accumulated through building diverse and different relationships with politicians from different Iraqi sects and bureaucratic circles, this constituted a noticeable shift towards policies that are more focused on the security dimension, heading towards curbing the threat posed by the terrorist organization PKK. With his appointment as head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on June 3, 2023, Turkish foreign policy in the Iraqi file has gained the ability to develop in different directions. During the years that Hakan Fidan led the Turkish intelligence service, he laid the foundations for bilateral relations with several effective communication channels in the Iraqi arena. It seems that he had built a good relationship with the head of the Iraqi intelligence service at the time, Mustafa Al-Kazemi. More importantly, he strengthened the bonds of close friendship with the head of the Hashd ELshabi Authority, Faleh Fayyadh, who is the real political actor in Iraq. He met with him many times in Baghdad and Ankara. Turkey also gave full confidence to the Sunni businessman Sheikh Khamis Khanjar, leader of the Azm Alliance, who emerged to the surface of Iraqi politics in recent years and became one of Turkey’s main partners, who initially allied with the leader of the EL Takddum (progress)Movement and former Iraqi Parliament Speaker Mohammed al-Halbousi, who formed the Sovereignty Alliance. However, this alliance collapsed after Mohammed al-Halbousi changed his political course. In terms of security and defense, Hakan Fidan achieved solid ground through foreign policy and diplomatic work The uniqueness of creating a legal outlet in agreement with the Iraqi side to protect the borders and Turkish national security by launching military operations inside Iraqi territory against the terrorist organization PKK that threatens Turkish national security, within a previous agreement with the Iraqi government that allows the Turkish army to penetrate Iraqi territory to fight the terrorist organization.
Also, the Iraqi Minister of Defense, Sheikh Thabet Muhammad Saeed Al-Aybek Al-Abbasi, had a close relationship with Hakan Fidan when he ran for the Iraqi Council of Representatives elections in 2018 within the Nineveh Our Identity coalition, which won a seat inside the Iraqi parliament. It is noteworthy that Sheikh Thabet Al-Abbasi founded the Iraqi Turkmen Salvation Front in 2017.
The Iraqi Minister of Defense, Sheikh Thabet Al-Abbasi, met with the Turkish Foreign Minister, Hakan Fidan, in Baghdad in August 2023.
If we shed light on the Shia file in Turkish foreign policy, we find that Turkey has not marginalized any of the Shia politicians, and on every occasion it stands with the most prominent Shia leaders. On the other hand Turkey has special relations with Sheyh Ammar al-Hakim, the former head of the Supreme Islamic Council and head of the AL- Hikma Movement. In one of my television interviews with Sheyh. Ammar al-Hakim, I asked him about the Turkish role in Iraq, and he answered by saying:
Turkey represents serious policy in the region, as it is the largest economic partner of Iraq, and we look at Turkey as a strategic ally of Iraq, as there are dozens of agreements signed between Iraq and Turkey, it connects the Arabs with the West.
Thus, we find that Turkey has historical, economic and cultural relations with Iraq, as it is a large Islamic country with its status and role in the region, and the Turkish Republic is Iraq’s window to the West.
Turkey has been able to address hot issues in the region and in Iraq by adopting a wise and balanced policy. We are always in favor of strengthening bilateral relations with Turkey.
It always stands at equal distances with the spectrum of the Iraqi people.. and most importantly, Sheyh. Ammar al-Hakim said something that most Iraqis may not know, where he said:
We have a special and personal relationship with the Turks, as my wife’s mother is Turkish, meaning we have intermarriage relations with the Turks.
As for the Turkish foreign policy towards the Kurdish file in Iraq:
It is no secret that the Kurdish political arena includes the two main Kurdish parties (the KDP and PUK )
The KDP , led by Masoud Barzani, is characterized by its proximity to Turkey through economic and political ties, as the Kurdistan Democratic Party adopts a policy hostile to the terrorist organization PKK, and this policy is an important strategic line for Turkey.. In 2011, Mr. Recep Tayyip Erdogan went to Erbil and opened Erbil International Airport, and he was then serving as Prime Minister.. Then the visits between the two sides were repeated.
Turkey’s relationship with the PUK that led by Pavel Talabani, who is loyal to Iran, is tense due to the party’s support for the terrorist organization PKK. On many occasions, the Turkish government called on the PUK abandon its policy of supporting the terrorist organization.
Turkish foreign policy towards Iraq has been based on two main pillars since 2003.
First: The unity of Iraqi territory (geopolitical security), as Turkey considered that preserving the unity of Iraqi territory is related to its national security, and the Kirkuk issue falls within this framework.
Second: Stability in Iraq (economic security). For Ankara, the stability of Iraq is a strategic gain for the continuity of trade exchange between the two countries.
On July 12, 2004, an official delegation from the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs headed by Ambassador Adham Tok Demir visited Kirkuk. The delegation included figures from various institutions in the Turkish government. It was the first official visit to Kirkuk after the fall of the former regime. During this visit, I was able to meet the ambassador. Adham Touq Demir in a television interview at the Kirkuk Governorate Diwan.. I asked the ambassador about the reasons for their visit to Kirkuk, and he answered saying:
Iraq is one of the important countries in the region that
Iraq is distinguished by its possession of huge human and natural resources. We also hope that the Iraqi people will live in peace and stability. Kirkuk represents a miniature Iraq that includes all nationalities and religions, and they are linked to each other by ties of kinship and neighborhood. We will also meet with all Turkmen, Kurdish, Arab and Assyrian parties, and we will visit Turkmen, Kurdish and Arab villages. We are also ready to extend a helping hand to all Iraqi brothers.
From the perspective of my journalistic and media profession, and through conducting dozens of television and press interviews with Turkish leaders, starting with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, passing through the officials of the Iraqi file in the Turkish Foreign Ministry, and ending with Turkish ambassadors and diplomats inside Iraq from 2003 to 2020, I would like to respectfully present some recommendations to His Excellency the Turkish Foreign Minister, Dr. Hakan Fidan, regarding Iraqi-Turkish relations. In return, I held dozens of meetings with Iraqi leaders regarding bilateral relations between Iraq and Turkey, and within the framework of these meetings, I outline these recommendations for the Iraqi-Turkish interest.
1- Opening research and study centers on Iraqi affairs to draw up political, economic and security strategies.
2- Appointing intelligent and trustworthy advisors in Turkish missions inside Iraq who are fluent in both Arabic and Turkish.
3- Appointing electronic committees to respond to the deviant voices that appear here and there and to respond to the slander against Turkey.
4- Not relying on figures and partners from semi-intellectuals.
5- Not relying on political figures and those who have political hibernation.
6- Turkey must be careful in choosing its allied .
7- Allocating the necessary space on the TRT Arabic channel for Iraqi affairs within political programs.
The channel lacks political programs with Iraqi decision-makers and due to the importance of Iraqi-Turkish relations, a section of news and political programs must be allocated that are concerned with Iraqi affairs.
As we were in the Iraqi Turkmen Eli satellite channel, we used to produce programs and political news that specialize in Iraqi-Turkish relations within meetings with Turkish representatives and diplomats in order to bring viewpoints closer and show. Facts for Iraqis about Türkiye’s right to carry out some political or military operations and in return to hold meetings with Iraqi officials about relations between the two countries in different places, but this satellite channel now lacks such programs.
