World press on Iran, Turkey and the Caucasus (April 18, 2012)

The New York Times published an article headlined "Kurds Remain on the Sideline of Syria’s Uprising". "The Kurds of Syria, long oppressed by the government of President Bashar al-Assad, are largely staying out of the fighting that has gone on for more than a year in their country, hedging their bets as they watch to see who will gain the upper hand," the article says. "Bashar Assad has made major efforts to keep them out of the fray, aware that their support for the opposition could prove decisive. He has promised that hundreds of thousands of Kurds will be given citizenship, something the ruling Assad family has denied them for nearly half a century," the author explains. "The Kurds have other reasons for holding back: the opposition movement in Syria is made up in large part by the Muslim Brotherhood and Arab nationalists, two groups that have little sympathy for Kurdish rights, and the Kurds cling to their long-sought goal of a Kurdish state," the author adds.

The Washington Post  published an article entitled "The stage is set for a deal with Iran". The author of the article, David Ignatius, believes that the Iranians expect to be paid in “step-by-step” increments, as they move toward a deal. "At a minimum, they will want a delay of the U.S. and European sanctions that take full effect on June 28 and July 1 respectively. That timetable gives the West leverage, too — to keep the threatened sanctions in place until the Iranians have made the required concessions. It’s a well-prepared negotiation, in other words, and it seems likely to succeed if each side keeps to the script and doesn’t muff its lines," the article reads.

Hurriyet published an article by Murat Yetkin headlined "Will Israel attack Iran?" "Israel might be physically capable of carrying out such a strike, so it could be possible on paper. But could Israel, and the U.S., as Israel’s number-one ally, face the consequences of such an attack, which would in no way finish off Iran? Also, is there a consensus in Israeli public opinion that it would serve Israel’s best interests to attack Iran?" the article reads. "The answer to both of the questions is the same: probably not."