The Gulf Crisis and New World Order — Page 76
Fourth Friday Sennon Aug 24, 1990 that of the Scottish. In the same way the Welsh think that they are being subjected to injustice and exploitation and that the English are depriving them of their legitimate rights. This was just an example to illustrate the fact that most of the states in the world, whether they be America, England, Germany or others, are not c omposed of one nation. The scholars in this field are of the opinion that if there is any country that may be called a nation, it is Turkey. But this too may not be entirely correct because the Kurds call themselves a distinctly separate nation from the Turks. Their values, language, and temperament are entirely different from those of the Turks, and it is for this reason that a great hatred and mistrust exists between them. The Kurds have been protesting for long that they continue to be subjected to atrocities and injustices by the ruling Turks. Only God knows how far this is true. Nevertheless it appears correct that if any country is entitled to being called one nation then, barring the Kurdish area, it is the Turks. In fact, comparatively speaking, it can be said about them that they are one nation and one country. But it is surprising that the number of Turks living outside Turkey is much more than those living in Turkey; there is a ratio of 3:2. Although Turks live in all parts of the world yet their greatest number is settled in the Soviet Union, where they are known as 'Turkman'. Even there, they are fragmented and various movements are emerging in them. One Turk dominated state exaggerates its apprehensions against the other state, thus creating barriers between the two. But at the same time, a popular sentiment is developing that since basically they are all Turks, their eventual identification with mainland Turkey is essential. Turkey, at one stage can exploit this feeling and link the overall interest of the Turks with the fonnation of a single greater Turkey. The historical entity of the Ottoman Empire - a concept that applied to vast areas of the world at one time - is bound to be resurrected. And Islam would have to play a crucial role in this development. At this point those who may be classified as Turks linguistically, will be attracted towards Iran because of their Shiite faith and their Iranian roots. Then there are those nations which adhere strictly to the Sunni school of thought - they may speak the Turkish language, the 0i-ghar dialect or any other language - they will be coaxed by the Sunni Muslim world through its economic power. 76