The problem is that the US, under the Republicans, has been reduced to the status of a province of Iran. The CIA has taken over all branches of US intelligence, and has one of its own as Secretary of Defense, Robert Gates, who is intensely pro-Iran. For Secretary Gates, and his Undersecretary for Policy, Eric Edelman, Turkey is the enemy. Gates and Edelman support the PKK against Turkey, and they support Iran against Turkey. They wants the Kurds to breakup the Tukish state, using Iraqi Kurdistan as the launching pad.

Gates and Edelman are also responsible for the US bond with Iran's Revolutionary Guards (IRGC). The IRGC is Iran's SA and SS troops combined into a single commnd. The IRGC has taken over many commands in Iraq''s new army and police forces. A Saudi White paper prepared six months ago and dismissed by Gates, accuses Iran of using the IRGC to build a state "within a state" in Iraq. Meanwhile, Gates looks the other way.

Gates, Rice and Khalilzad, while protecting Iran, have declared war on Turkey. Each of them in public testimony in the last three weeks, referred to the Iraqi Kurdish area as "Kurdistan," which is the name the Kurds use to describe their new megastate. All three also warned Turkey against going into Kurdish areas to suppress the PKK, which routinely attacks Turkey from its Iraqi kurdish bases.

Turkey must defend itself. I recomended two months ago that Turkey should take Kirkuk in Iraq (which the Iraqi Kurds seek to annex as a prelude to dividing Iraq with Iran). See Turkish Weekly, "Turkey Must Strike immediately in Kirkuk."

Turkey should also take the Iraqi port of Basra,which controls the major exit route for US forces. At the moment Basra is in the hands of pro-Iran militia groups. Whoever controls Basra controls Iraq's oil industry and Iraq's outlet to the Persian Gulf.

Even more important, whoever controls Basra controls Baghdad. Gatess and Edelman prefer that Basra falls into in Iranian hands. The Iranians are pushing to take Basa by harrassing and attacking British troops in Basra,according to local British commanders as quoted on the BBC. Last week the Iranians took fifteen British hostages to ompel the UK forces to leave.

Gates and Edelman will not make a move to deter the Kurds and the Irnians from breaking Iraq into mini-states. The Iraqi resistance, mostly Sunnis, knows this, which is why it continues to fight rather than submit to the Kurds and Iranians, who would destroy Iraq.

If the US wants to limit the appeal of the Sunni insurgents, it should give a green light for Turkish forces to move into Kirkuk and Basra, possibly with Syrian and even token Iranian support.

On the day this happens, Iran will suffer a cushing defeat, and Ahmadinejad will be looking for a new job.