World press on Kurdish issue, Russia's stance on Iran (June 18-19, 2012)

Hurriyet published an article by Nuray Mert devoted to Leyla Zana, one of the most respected Kurdish political figures. "She has been a symbol of the Kurdish struggle for freedom and rights since she was first elected as an MP. She has always been a very popular figure both at home and abroad for her charismatic personality, which turned her into a political icon. She has always been independent-minded and respected as such," the author says about Zana. "Nevertheless, her public call of support for Prime Minister Erdoğan in her recent interview (Hürriyet, June 14) created a lot of controversy. She explained that she had invested all her hopes in Erdoğan to solve the Kurdish question, as he is powerful enough to do so," the article reads. "In short, it would be wiser for Zana to play a comparatively independent role to try to convince the BDP of the need for peaceful negotiations, without risking alienating or dividing it. Nevertheless, such a role requires more political skill and less ego. Unfortunately, political icons often fail the test of the times of political turbulence," Mert concludes.


The Moscow Times published an article headlined 'The Kremlin's Iran Problem'. "On Monday and Tuesday, all eyes will be on Russia as it hosts the third round in the troubled international negotiations now under way between Iran and the West over the former's nuclear program," the author of the article, Ilan Berman, says.  "Since the early 1990s in particular, Russia has become a major supplier of conventional weaponry and later of nuclear assistance to Iran. In the process, it has emerged as a principal enabler of Tehran's atomic ambitions and geopolitical expansion in the greater Middle East. Moreover, despite mounting global concern about Iran's nuclear effort, Moscow has doubled down on this strategic partnership with Iran over the past decade, greatly complicating Western efforts to curb Iran's nuclear menace in the process," the article reads. "The reasons for Russia's intransigence are understandable. Iran has become a valuable strategic asset for the Kremlin and a lucrative one as well. Iran initially served as a lifeline for Russia's struggling post-Soviet defense industry in the early 1990s. In the 2000s, it became a dependable customer of nuclear technology and assistance. The Russian-built nuclear plant in Bushehr became the showpiece of Moscow's contributions to the Iranian national nuclear project," the author says. "To be sure, there is no shortage of trepidation across the Russian political spectrum regarding the potential perils of partnership with Iran's ayatollahs. But for the Kremlin, cooperation with Iran clearly remains a net benefit, at least in the short term. Although Moscow, to its credit, agreed in 2010 not to sell the S-300 air defense system to Iran, this appears to be a one-off accommodation under Western pressure and clearly did not represent a change in Russian policy toward Iran. On the contrary, Russia has undermined the fragile global consensus that now exists in favor of Iran's economic isolation," he underlines. "The Kremlin now has more incentive than ever to align with the West in pressuring Iran. But if it fails to harness the political capital and influence that it has built up with Tehran over the years to help peacefully curtail Iran's nuclear program, Russia will certainly be among those held responsible for the consequences," the author concludes.