8 - 14 October 1998
Issue No.398
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Al-Ahram Weekly On-line 8 - 14 October 1998 Issue No.398 |
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 | Current issue | Previous issue | Site map | ||
Hostile borders
Turkey has consolidated its military ties with Israel, signed a mutual defence pact, and is now threatening to attack Syria. I am pessimistic about the situation, and aware of the evil consequences that could ensue if matters are not addressed promptly, before the entire region is embroiled. A confrontation between Turkey and Syria is the last thing we need today, in view of the current situation in the Middle East, where the peace process is floundering, relations are tense and an explosion is imminent any time.
I was shocked to learn that Turkey has threatened Syria several times, as though it were attempting to provoke it. Everyone from the president of the republic to the commander-in-chief of the armed forces has been involved in this posturing. Turkey crossed Iraq's borders a few years ago, organising a military operation within the borders of a sovereign state. Repeating the same operations against Syria will constitute a very dangerous pattern of aggression. The Kurdish problem, which Turkey uses as a pretext for its aggressions, has undergone no new developments. Negotiations, not threats to blow the region apart, are the only peaceful means of settling Turkey's problem with Syria.
Based on an interview by Mohamed Salmawy. |