Soldiers were killed by an IED in southern Turkey, an attack that is being blamed on Kurdish seperatists. The Kurdish Workers’ Party has been in operation since 1984. Some have reported that the Kurdish rebels are planning large attacks on May Day.
Turkey and Armenia have made formal efforts to put a nearly century old conflict behind them, though the effects of the move may have negative implications for the EU. Turkey has been an ally of Azerbaijan in its fight against Armenia surrounding the Nagorno-Karabakh region, whose control is disputed, but which Azerbaijan stakes claim to. If Azerbaijan believes that Turkey is betraying them, they could move closer to Russia and remove the last viable non-Russian gas option.
In a move that some call “blackmail”, Turkey has removed its Canadian ambassador because some Canadian officials attended an event commemorating the genocide of Armenians in 1915. Turkey denies that it was a genocide, and that claims of 1.5 million Armenians killed by Turks are exaggerated. This is the second time that Turkey has moved to recall its ambassador to Canada over similar issues.
Turkish Cypriot nationalist are set to win the most recent rounds of elections, putting further strain on relations with Greek Cypriots. This will further dampen Turkey’s attempt to join the EU, as Greek Cypriots control the island, and they refuse to support Turkish EU membership without island unity. Turkey invaded part of Cyrpus in response to coup plots in 1974.
Many have taken to the streets in Ankara, the capital of Turkey, to protest government attempts to investigate a suspected coup. The suspected plotters planned on overthrowing the Turkish government and installing a nationalist-secular government. This was to be accomplished by provoking the army through bombings and general insurrection. The group is called Ergenekon.