EGF Turkey File, Mid January 2013

Insights into Turkish Domestic and International Politics during January 2013
By John VanPool, EGF Turkey and Black Sea Regional Analyst

Key Points:

• Reports leak about the training of Turkish soldiers for missions to secure Syria"s weapons of mass destruction.
• Construction is underway on Kurdish Regional Government"s pipeline projects to Turkey. The project continues to be a thorn in the side of Baghdad, alienating it from Ankara as well as Erbil.
• KRG-Turkish cooperation is also key in Ankara"s efforts at creating a counterweight to the PYD in Syria, with pro-Masoud Barzani groups seen as a better option than PKK sympathetic militant groups.
• Turkey"s judicial and penal systems come under scrutiny despite substantial EU funding to improve prisoners living conditions.
• In a move to diversify away from cleaner gas-powered electrical production plants, tenders for coal powered plants are on the rise. The growth in coal power plants is part of a government effort to lessen reliance on gas supplies from Russia and Iran.