You should have put this instead of the 17/25 December clock!

We have been fighting against PKK terrorism and separatism for 40 years. Even though more than half of these 40 years have passed during the AKP era, it has not been possible to ensure that our neighbor Iraq declares the PKK a "terrorist organization" all these years.

Finally, a glimmer of hope appeared when Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, accompanied by Minister of National Defense Yaşar Güler and MIT Undersecretary İbrahim Kalın, visited Iraq on March 14.

Six days after the visit, Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan made a statement regarding the developments in Kırşehir, and Minister of National Defense Yaşar Güler did the same in Kahramanmaraş.

While Hakan Fidan said, "For the first time, our Iraqi counterparts have registered that the PKK is a banned organization acting against Iraq's interests. We are in a period of national resurgence," Minister of National Defense Yaşar Güler made the following assessment before adding more: "We have been fighting this PKK terrorist organization for 40 years. But unfortunately, for 40 years, this Iraqi administration could neither call these guys a terrorist organization nor ban them. Such an organization lives in their own country and they feel no discomfort at all."

"When we went on the last Baghdad trip, the Iraqi administration accepted for the first time that it (the PKK) is a banned organization and a terrorist organization, and declared it here. Of course, this is something gratifying for us."

Pay attention; one of the ministers says "banned organization," the other says "terrorist organization." Understand our situation!..

Of course, it became clear that Iraq did not officially declare the PKK a "terrorist organization." All it did was the following:

It first considered the PKK a "threat"... Then it defined it as a "banned organization."

This was the situation when Erdoğan went to Iraq on April 22. Indeed, after expressing his satisfaction with the PKK being declared a "banned organization," he noted that he "shared with his counterparts his strong belief that it would be officially declared a terrorist organization and its presence on Iraqi soil would be ended as soon as possible," and that "this is a requirement of our neighborly and fraternal law."

The development after Erdoğan's visit was Iraq's decision to close three political parties affiliated with the PKK.

On August 15, this time the Iraqi delegation was in Ankara. They participated in a "high-level security" meeting with our delegation, again consisting of Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, Minister of National Defense Yaşar Güler, and MIT Undersecretary İbrahim Kalın. After the meeting, Hakan Fidan called it a "historic development" and announced the following:

"The memorandum of understanding on military, security, cooperation, and counter-terrorism that we have been negotiating for some time... was just signed by our Defense Ministers. We believe that we will take our cooperation to a higher level through the joint coordination and training centers envisaged in this agreement."

They didn't sign such "historic" agreements, establish joint operations centers, or appoint counter-terrorism coordinators with the US, which is the patron of the PKK and the occupier of Iraq, did they?!

I suppose it is enough to state that Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein used the phrase "PKK elements" regarding the terrorist organization during the joint press conference with Hakan Fidan for the rest to be understood.

Everything was discussed at this "historic" meeting with Iraq, but a topic that should have been our main agenda item was not discussed or asked about.

Before coming to that, let us underline this:

Following the meeting and the signed agreements, success epics were written in the pro-government media as if they had come from a single pen. It was obvious that they had been briefed at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and were reporting it unquestioningly as always. But why didn't a single one of them ask, or couldn't ask, about this hot topic?!

I Guess We Have No Issue Called Kirkuk Left

That topic was Kirkuk.

As is known; 12 days ago, Rebvar Taha from Talabani's PUK—which stands shoulder to shoulder with the PKK/YPG and about which Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said, "it has now become a national security threat to us"—was illegally elected as the governor of Kirkuk.

Despite the genuine reactions of the Iraqi Turkmen Front and the Arabs, and the superficial ones of the Barzanis, his certificate of election was immediately issued and he started his duty.

Who gave the illegal governor his certificate? The Iraqi administration, with which Ankara signed "historic" agreements against the PKK!..

The "stay of execution" application made by the Iraqi Turkmen Front for this illegal election was also rejected by the Iraqi Federal Supreme Court the other day on the grounds that it did not carry "urgency"!..

We had reported the situation in Ankara; while a diplomat and then AKP Spokesperson Ömer Çelik said a few words in the aftermath of the election, MHP Deputy Chairman İsmail Özdemir made a post. After the horse had bolted to Üsküdar, the chief columnist of the MHP's newspaper Türkgün, after explaining what had happened to Kirkuk since the invasion of Iraq, asked the following from the Iraqi administration and Hakan Fidan:

"The Iraqi central government, which has signed agreements with Turkey in the fight against the terrorist organization PKK and in this sense has closed 3 political parties that aid and abet the PKK, must intervene in this pirate election. Otherwise, the way will be paved for undesirable events in Kirkuk. Following what happened in Kirkuk last year, Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, who said, 'We view what is happening in Kirkuk, the homeland of the Turkmens, who are one of the original and founding elements of Iraq, with sadness and concern. Protecting the rights of the Turkmens is important to us and should not be a subject of political bargaining; we will always defend the rights of the Kirkuk Turkmens,' must accelerate his diplomatic negotiations in the face of these latest developments and break this trap set for the Turkmens."

That is all!..

Neither Erdoğan nor Hakan Fidan opened their mouths, nor did their media ask a single question.

And what should we make of Bahçeli's 12-day silence, who determines license plate numbers for Kirkuk and Mosul?

While speaking about the bloody scenes during the parliamentary sessions for Can Atalay, he said, "The matter is completely closed," and stated that the AKP had "done what was necessary" even without being a junior partner...

He called journalist Fulya Öztürk, who was broadcasting with our soldiers in northern Iraq, and named her "Fulya Asena Öztürk"...

Finally, during the visit of Fenerbahçe Sports Club President Ali Koç; he placed the 17/25 December clock in his office. He accused those trying to interpret the meaning of this of engaging in "fifth column activity" and gave the message, "When the day comes, a reckoning is inevitable."

But he did not mention the "K" of Kirkuk.

If only, during Ali Koç's visit, the numbers "82/83" or the Turkmen flag had been placed instead of the 17/25 December clock... Thus, no opportunity would have been given to the "uproar" that occupies the agenda "as if there were a rift in the People's Alliance," the attention of the Turkish Nation would have been drawn to the land of the Turkmens, and those who want to seize Kirkuk would have been given a proper lesson!..