PKK executive warns of Turkey’s covert operations to manipulate Iran, destabilise Iraq

In an exclusive interview with Medya Haber TV, Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) Executive Duran Kalkan assessed the Turkish government’s policies towards Iraq, Iran and North and East Syria, accusing Turkey of orchestrating turmoil in the region for its own gain.

Warning the Iraqi government, Kalkan claimed that Turkey, backed by the ruling Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, wants to create instability in Iraq and take over Kirkuk (Kerkûk). He said the Turkish National Intelligence Organisation (MİT) was actively organising in different parts of Iraq and attempting to take control of Kirkuk through military interventions.

“In fact, MİT, the intelligence service, is organised everywhere. It’s organised throughout South Kurdistan and Iraq,” he said, adding, “It was in the news today, it’s established a new base in Duhok. It has over 100 bases in Iraq. It is an occupation, these are occupation attacks. They want to take Kirkuk.”

Kalkan accused Turkey of stirring trouble not only in Iraq but throughout the region, citing the recent bombing, claimed by ISIS, in the Iranian city of Kerman as an operation organised by Turkish intelligence. He suggested that Turkey was manipulating Iran, provoking it to take action against the PKK.

“They carried out a massacre through ISIS. The latest information is that the attackers came from Turkey and stayed in Turkey for years. They travelled from Mosul to Turkey. They are MİT agents,” Kalkan said.

Underlining the complexity of the situation, Kalkan said that the aim was to persuade Iran to join forces against the PKK. He expressed scepticism about the success of such efforts, stressing that each country has its own interests.

With regard to the recent Turkish attacks on North and East Syria, also known as Rojava, Kalkan stated these were driven by the fear of the democratic development of the Kurdish-led self-administration and the unity of the different ethnic groups in the region. He claimed that Turkey’s aggression stems from its fear of being held accountable for historical atrocities.

Kalkan concluded by addressing the people of Rojava, urging them to stand firm against the attacks and reiterating that their only option was to continue to live freely in the region.

“The aim of all these attacks and threats is to scare, to frighten and to make them leave. No one is going to leave, no matter what. We will live free in these lands. There is no other way. There is no other place,” he said.