Turkish war with Kurds will store up trouble for years

Significance

Turkey is gradually winning its war against the secessionist Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK). The state’s hold on the Kurdish-populated south-east no longer faces a serious challenge. There is no overt opposition to the policy from Turkish voters, despite the constant deaths of soldiers and police.

Impacts

• The war in the south-east will remain a large but unpublicised drain on Turkey’s budget.
• More infrastructure projects will underpin military control of the south-east.
• Turkish military pressure on the Kurdish enclaves in Syria will grow.
• Mooted Iranian-Turkish cooperation against PKK-linked groups will likely be limited, because of a divergence of aims.