NUCEYFI: First, I want to specify that I am very happy to be in Turkey. I feel myself among my brothers in here. The main goal of my visit concerns economic rather than political issues. There was an Iraqi fair in the city of Gaziantep. We joined this exhibition. We talked with the esteemed Governor and Mayor there. We examined the urban services of Gaziantep Municipality. We need to do similar studies in Mosul. In addition, we negotiated with businessmen and industrialists in Gaziantep. They want to do business in our region. They even want to open a school there. We support these expansions. Again, we talked with the Governor of Istanbul and the President of Chamber of Commerce. In Ankara, we had an interview with the Governor, the President of the Chamber of Commerce and industrialists. We want to generate strong relationships with businessmen in Turkey and attract them to our region. I think there are great opportunities for Turkish businessmen in Mosul because a lot of things have changed with the last election in Mosul. We need our Turkish brothers and Turkey's experience.Our doors will be open to them. They are highly experienced and I believe that they want to help us. In a word, our primary goal is the development of economic relations.

 

I absolutely agree with you. Iraqi institutions and organizations also want to establish relations with you. We have a strategy center called Irakiyun Institution in Mosul. There was also a Mosul Research Center. This center examined relations between Turkey and Iraq. However, because of financial problems and the unwillingness of the authorities this center’s works could not be as effective as desired. There is still a need for financial support. We can collaborate on this issue. I hope to establish a Turkish Cultural Center in Mosul. Thus, a cultural bridge between Turkey and Mosul could be founded. It is not possible to do everything through official channels in order to respect protocol. More effective working relationships could be provided by finding alternatives. We should establish strong relationships in the education, training and research institutions in Turkey and Mosul. On the other hand, there is important historical information and documents related to Mosul and also Iraq in Turkey. The great writer, Dr. Mahmoud El Celili, came to Istanbul, Turkey to write Mosul’s history. He translated hundreds of archival documents. There are many fields where we can collaborate.

 

During my term as governor the oppressed city of Tal Afar will have the needed interest and attention. We held a meeting about Tal Afar in Provincial Parliament two weeks ago. One hundred and fifty people attended from Tal Afar. Tal Afar is mainly Turkmen. I believe that Tal Afar’s people are at fault in some ways for the events that transpired after invasion. The most important reason for these events is that some people were allowed to settle in their society. If they had excluded people who divided them, they could have prevented these painful events. People from Tal Afar should listen the words of fair and honest people. Meanwhile, a lot of money was spent on Tal Afar after the invasion. However, nobody knows how the money was spent. Nevertheless, we have some projects for Tal Afar. We have a water project which will be finished in August. However, Tal Afar’s most important need is domestic peace.

 

After the elections, my first visit was to Tal Afar. I went to the region of the Shiite community. The message I wanted to emphasize was that if society is left alone, the region will be safe and peaceful. However, there were major problems because some people from outside were allowed to enter. The groups who caused the problems are well known. Tal Afar needs real peace participated in by everyone. Tal Afar’s people are good natured and honest. Society should recognize the realities.

 

 

Local elections have actually revealed the basic lines of the general elections. There are two separate lines which became clear. One advocates national unity and the others support the division of Iraq. Iraqi people have eliminated the people who want to divide them. The public tended to vote for those who follow the national line. However, some groups continue to support sectarianism and separatism. They capitalize on this situation.

 

Some regions in the province of Mosul want to be considered “disputed regions.” The Kurdish government’s claims continue. What do you want to say on this subject? 
 

The Kurds do not behave logically on this issue. Political life continues in Mosul. Kurdish parties have lost too much. They did not consider that they could fall into this situation. They had great opportunities from 2003 until 2008. They could get everything they wanted in that period. If they had compromised for balance on some issues, they could have achieved their aims. Instead they tried to grab everything. That time was the most powerful period of the Kurds and the weakest period of Iraq. Now the situation has changed, and they cannot achieve anything. In fact, they have also lost what they had. Mosul is really powerful. In terms of population, area and trade volume Mosul equals the sum of Arbil and Dohuk. The Kurds antagonized Mosul by their own misconduct. Recent actions indicate that they are really bankrupt. The same thing also happened in Kirkuk because they antagonized Arabs and Turkmen with similar behavior.

Kirkuk has been assigned a special status by Article 23. A delegation of Arabs, Kurds and Turkmen was asked to clarify arguments, but they could not complete their work. They wanted two months of additional time, but it was not enough. This time has ended four days ago. The reason that the work could not completed is Kurdish insistence. They are not constructive and demand a lot of things. They cannot achieve anything, because they want more than necessary. The situation is beginning to change in Iraq now. I believe that in the next general elections, the Kurds will not even be able to take 40-45 seats in the Assembly. There must be a strong alliance against the Kurdish parties. It can be said that all parties agree about the Kirkuk issue except for the Kurds. The idea is to share Kirkuk's administration equally. Time does not work in their favor anymore. Turkmen and Arabs should run in our elections on a single list, and this is also a fundamental issue for the future of Kirkuk.
 

This is very difficult. If it happens, the problem will not be solved, on the contrary, it will worsen and conflict will occur. If there is not a solution where all parties agree, conflict may erupt in five or ten years. I liked a Kurdish tribal chief’s expression. He says, “Unless everyone is satisfied we cannot get anything in Kirkuk. If we can get something, then we lose again when the rivers are full of blood.’

 

I also thank you for your interest in the matter of Mosul and Iraq.