Şervan: The peoples will decide on the new system

Due to its internationalization, the conflict in the Middle East is also repeatedly seen as an expression of the Third World War. Cafer Şervan, as a member of the Executive Council of the Kurdistan Communities Union (KCK), spoke to ANF about the political perspective and development of the region in the context of geopolitics. He warned of even greater destruction in the Middle East due to this conflict of global hegemonic powers.

What is the nature of the Third World War that the hegemonic powers are waging, and what does that tell us about the system that is being created?

Capitalist globalization and the new world order are penetrating into all areas and trying to get them under control. The course of the war fronts has changed. It is in the interest of the forces of capitalist modernity that the contradictions and disputes between the hegemonic powers manifest themselves as long-lasting low-intensity wars. The Third World War in the Middle East will continue at full speed. The U.S. conflicts with Russia and China will not hold any new developments for the region; they will only bring more destruction and death. Real innovations and a new system will not be created by the capitalist forces, but by the movements leading the struggle of the peoples. It has become clear that no new political systems can be established in Iraq and Syria without taking into account the will of the peoples.

In the current chaos and conflict, the Turkish state also seems to be active. How far can it go?

The AKP/MHP government used all the possibilities of the state to create new colonies in the Middle East and the Caucasus. Although Turkey is reeling from a variety of profound crises, it is trying to participate in the distribution struggles of the hegemonic powers. However, international forces have not allowed Turkey to open new war fronts. They have curtailed Turkey’s military activities in Libya, Afghanistan, and the eastern Mediterranean, forcing the Turkish state to take a step back.

That may be so in those areas. However, the attacks on the Kurds are not abating. Why?

Since Turkey is a member of NATO, the U.S. and European countries are putting all kinds of logistical and weapons support at the service of Turkey’s genocidal policies against the Kurdish people. NATO persists in using Turkey against Russia and the democratic forces in the Middle East. NATO is ready to remain silent when the AKP/MHP government attacks the forces in Rojava that have dealt a death blow to ISIS.

The Kurdish people and the PKK are the leading forces in the struggle for democracy and freedom in the Middle East. Turkey is attacking a force on which the peoples’ hopes for freedom rest and is supported by NATO. It is therefore important to target the fascist Turkish state and that the Kurds do not rely on the capitalist system, but continue their struggle on the basis of their own strength in the long term.

Will the Rojava revolution trigger new revolutions in the Near and Middle East?

The states are holding on with all their might to their hegemonic status quo over Kurdistan. They do not want the balances to shift. The international powers are also in agreement with the states in the region regarding the Kurdish struggle for freedom. Turkey, Iran, Iraq and Syria can put aside all contradictions and conflicts and act together when it comes to Kurdish demands and resistance. Now it is hard for them to come together as before. The contradictions between them have increased. In this regard, it has become difficult for them to work together against our movement. With the Rojava Revolution, the Kurds have reached an important level to work together with the peoples of the region against the occupying forces. The problems between Kurds and Arabs are being solved more and more. Iraq has also been able to resolve the Kurdish issue to a certain extent. An Iraqi state that fully resolves the Kurdish question cannot enter into an anti-Kurdish partnership with Turkish colonialism. Both the concrete reality on the ground and the Kurdish-Arab relations that emerged in the Rojava revolution and have reached a strategic level form the basis of a Kurdish-Arab alliance that will spread in the long term.

The Rojava revolution resembles neither the popular movements in Afghanistan nor those in the Middle East. Internationalist forces from all over the world rushed to participate, and the revolution became a representation of all democratic and progressive humanity. It is a revolution that stands up for the peoples at every level and builds self-defense on this basis. In this sense, the revolution of Rojava plays a vanguard role in the resistance struggle of the peoples of the Middle East. The revolution of Rojava was brought to life by the ideas and philosophy of Rêber Apo [Leader Abdullah Ocalan] and is influencing the peoples of the entire region. The revolution took place as a process of construction and has now become concrete in self-management and self-defense.

Democracy is considered a fundamental approach in all social organization and construction work in Rojava. This is an important development that the peoples are taking as an example. Especially in the field of women and youth, great successes have been created with the revolution in terms of education and organizing. 

How do you assess the contradictions between the U.S. and Turkey and the relationship with Russia?

AKP/MHP fascism always plays the same game, but this time it was also shown up by its strategic ally, the United States. Turkey will not be able to find support like before. Erdoğan had made great preparations before he traveled to the United States. He invested a lot to get a meeting with Joe Biden and diverted a large amount from the treasury to present his book. It was supposed to be a one-man show. In the end, Biden did not meet with him. Low-level talks took place and he was sent home empty-handed. Biden’s insistence on a continued U.S. presence in northern and eastern Syria and the suggestion that Turkey poses a threat in the fight against ISIS are signals of a major policy shift.

Since Erdoğan did not get what he wanted from the U.S., he immediately rushed to Russia.  As it turned out, he did not get the support he needed from there either. Turkey did not fulfill Russia’s wishes. It attacked everywhere with its mercenary troops, breaking the agreement with Moscow. The Idlib issue will be more and more on the agenda and Russia will launch joint operations with the regime. It is obvious that such an offensive will be supported by Iran as well.

Why is Erdoğan trying to normalize relations with Arab states as well?

With U.S. approval and pressure, Erdoğan is trying to reestablish positive relations with Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and other Arab states. In this context, it is important to consider Turkey’s efforts to isolate the Arab tribes in northeastern Syria from self-rule and create contradictions. This can have dangerous consequences.

What can the Autonomous Administration do about it?

The intensity of the Autonomous Administration’s diplomatic relations with Arab countries will reverse this process. In this regard, the relations and agreements concluded by the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria with Russia will also disrupt the plans of the Turkish state. Russia will never establish a strategic relationship with the Turkish state as it has with the Syrian regime. Russia will always demand concessions. However, what is relevant for the Autonomous Administration in its relations with the Russian side is that the latter tries to benefit from the conflicts and struggles between the existing states through an alliance policy. The regime’s offensives on Idlib and Daraa are also likely to increase the strategy of pressure on Rojava.

What awaits the peoples of the Middle East 100 years after the Lausanne Agreement?

The borders established by the Treaty of Lausanne are official, but there are in fact changes and occupations in many areas. The Turkish attempts to occupy Iraqi and Syrian territory with the consent and support of NATO are clear expressions of this. Even though there are just attempts to make tactical changes and establish new balances, the Third World War continues with its center in the Middle East. It is in Iraq and Syria that the fighting and contradictions will intensify the most. The regional hegemonic powers will continue to try to use these areas to serve their own interests. The recent election results in Iran and Iraq will not change this. The U.S. has reduced the number of forces in Iraq and will make greater use of KDP territory in southern Kurdistan. Iran and Turkey could come into conflict as part of a plan involving the United States. With the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, the contradictions between these two powers increased. Both acted in an opposing manner there. Iran’s military activities on its border with Azerbaijan indicate that the conflict has already begun. Iran wants to strengthen its influence in the Middle East and, above all, increase its effectiveness in Syria and Lebanon, but especially in Iraq, in order to counter U.S. and Israeli policies. Therefore, it can be assumed that a period of strategic reckoning will begin in the territories of Iraq and Syria.

The AKP-MHP-Ergenekon alliance wants to dominate the region on the basis of the Ottoman National Pact. The Turkish state has put on the agenda an update of the Lausanne Agreement, and wants to regain former Ottoman territory in this way. Turkey is targeting the Kurdish people and their freedom movement, lights of hope for the peoples of the Middle East. The fascist duo of Erdoğan-Bahçeli will meet the same end with their attempts to rebuild the empire as the duo of Enver and Talat [main perpetrators of the genocide against the Armenians]. This will also bring relief to the peoples of the region. The fascist Turkish state is in a process of internal and external disintegration. It is trying to prolong its life through warmonging, nationalism and racism. But the freedom guerrilla is making the war fail on both technical and psychological levels. There is no longer the possibility of using mercenary groups in Syria as before. Due to the progressive international isolation, there is little room for Turkey to maneuver in this area as well. Domestically, a period has begun in which law and justice have been completely undermined and economic dependence on the outside is becoming more and more prominent.