For the sake of simplification, Iraq is primarily made us of three groups who really rather not be forced to govern together. The Shiites in the south would rather associate with Persians (Iran), the Sunni with Arabs (Saudi Arabia), and the Kurds with other Kurds. The latter being divided by a border between Iraq and Turkey. 
Turkey's a NATO ally although, since we largely dismissed not only the UN but also NATO when invading Iraq, the alliance is iffy. Trying to keep Turkey happy is a major factor in why we can't just chop the country up and be done with it, which probably is the easiest solution for us (it'd particularly suck for the Sunni's who'd have the least amount of oil to control). Division would likely lead to a period of reprisal killings and ethnic cleansings.Oh wait...
This reporter's a jerk, but an interesting piece nonetheless:
Bush's Turkish Gamble
By Robert D. Novak
Monday, July 30, 2007; Page A15
The morass in Iraq and deepening difficulties in Afghanistan have not deterred the Bush administration from taking on a dangerous and questionable new secret operation. High-level U.S. officials are working with their Turkish counterparts on a joint military operation to suppress Kurdish guerrillas and capture their leaders. Through covert activity, their goal is to forestall Turkey from invading Iraq. (More)
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