In a stunning rebuke of the White House policy on the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria [ISIS], Turkey asked the U.S.-founded North Atlantic Treaty Organization [NATO] under Article 4 to convene an emergency session for only the fifth time in its 68-year history. Turkey’s request comes only days after Turkey launched air strikes July 23 on ISIS near town of Kilis near the Syrian border on Southeast Turkey, expanding its bombing attacks to its old cross-border nemesis the Kurdistan Workers Party [PKK]. Citing Article 4 that requires NATO to defend the “territorial integrity, political independence or security” of a member-state, Turkey hopes to get help to push back growing ISIS encroachment on Turkey’s border. Attacking the PKK raises questions about Turkey’s motives, since the Kurds’ Peshmerga fighters have been the only reliable force pushing back ISIS in Iraq and Syria.
Started Sept. 23, 2014, Obama started a limited bombing campaign against ISIS in Iraq and later Syria, hoping to slow an advance toward the Turkish border. Citing a deteriorating security situation in the region, Brussels-based Germany’s Marshal Fund think tank official Bruen Late confirmed Turkey’s ISIS problem. “The rise of the Islamic State in northern Iraq, in northern Syria, has effectively destabilized the southern border of Turkey. But also domestically, the threat of terrorism has become very real,” Late told the Associated Press, confirming the need for NATO help. President Barack Obama, resisting calls from conservatives on Capitol Hill led by Senate Armed Services Chairman John McCain (R-Ariz.), has refused to put U.S. boots-on-the-ground. Obama’s policy stems from old campaign promises to end the Iraq and Afghan wars, vowing to avoid a new conflict.
With Turkey’s call for NATO’s help, it throws into question Obama’s ISIS policy, proving, beyond a doubt, that Mideast countries, especially the Kurds, can’t beat back ISIS’s advance, or consolidation of power, without U.S. help. Arguing that the U.S. has already sacrificed too much, spending nearly $2 trillion and losing 4,486 soldiers, Obama’s isolationist policy has contributed to the rise of ISIS. Calling ISIS’s actions “heinous terrorist attacks” leaving 32 dead of a recent suicide bombing near the Turkish border, Late confirmed the need for more back military up. “NATO allies follow developments very closely and stand in solidarity with Turkey,” said NATO Secretary-Gerneral Jaso Stoltenberg, speaking on behalf of NATO’s North Atlantic Council. Poland invoked the last Article 4 request in March 2014 after Russia annexed the Crimean Peninsula March 1, 2014.
NATO’s has no teeth unless its No. 1 benefactor, the U.S., supplies the firepower to back up military requests. Poland’s recent NATO requests fell on deaf ears before the U.S. agreed to more troops and equipment. Letting events get out hand with ISIS in Iraq and Syria have prompted other options, since the Obama administration refuses to deploy ground troops in the region. Going to NATO directly, Turkey pressures the White House to change its ISIS policy. Whatever Turkey’s request, Stoltenberg’s hands are tied unless the U.S. agrees to supply more troops and equipment in Iraq and Syria. Striking ISIS and PKK targets in Syria, Turkey agreed to let the U.S. to stage more attacks out its Incirlik U.S. Airbase. Letting Turkey expand its air strikes from ISIS to the PKK throws a monkey wrench into U.S. cooperation. U.S. officials know the sacrifices made by the Kurds fighting ISIS.
Dealing with Ankara, Secretary of State John Kerry needs to clarify the U.S. role in backing its air campaign against ISIS, not expanding attacks against the Kurds. Considered the biggest U.S. ally against ISIS, the Kurds are the only reliable ally in the region in fighting ISIS. Ian Keams, director of the European Leadership Network, isn’t sure whether Turkey has gone after ISIS or the Kurds or both. Despite ISIS atrocities, dangerously close the Turkish border, it’s not clear whether Turkey still sees the Kurds as their biggest threat. Turkish leaders “have actually been arguing that the Kurds in Syria are more of a threat for Turkey,” said Keams, showing Ankara’s old bias against the Kurds. White House officials should help Turkey understand the Kurd’s current role in fighting ISIS. If that doesn’t work, then Obama and Kerry need to seriously rethink sending in U.S. ground troops.
Watching ISIS-inspired terrorism roll up on American streets should drive home the necessity of intervening against ISIS. Pretending that other Mideast countries can do the heavy lifting, including Turkey, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Iran or any other Gulf State, ignores the rise of ISIS and consequences to Mideast stability. “We expect solidarity and support from our NATO allies,” said Turkey Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu, essentially asking the U.S. to get more involved. Now that Turkey’s invoked Article 4, it’s time for the White House to reevaluate its policy to play a more active role in beating back ISIS. When Turkey expects “solidarity” with NATO, they’re really asking the U.S. for military help. No one in the NATO alliance other than the U.S. has the resources to prevail against ISIS. Obama’s public remarks about other Mideast countries stepping up first is both unreasonable and unrealistic.
