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| Iraq |
| UPI hears and talks |
| 2003-03-10 |
| Officially, the Turkish government will not allow the U.S. 4th Infantry Division to land and transit from the Mediterranean ports of Mersin and Iskanderun until its Parliament votes again. In fact, there is intense activity under way at the Turkish ports, where U.S. and Turkish generals are quietly cooperating to stretch very far the interpretation of the January agreement to upgrade Turkish bases and ports. Just what I thought, watch the hands, not the mouth. That agreement allowed 3,500 U.S. troops -- and their engineering and maintenance equipment -- ashore to help prepare the bases for the transit of up to 62,000 troops. But with a nod and a wink from Turkish chief of staff Gen. Hilmi Ozkok, a lot more troops have landed, along with equipment that looks rather better suited to war than construction. As a result, NTV film of the U.S. convoys leaving Iskenderun for the new base of Kiziltepe, only 100 miles from the Iraqi border, has further inflamed an already hostile Turkish public opinion. Bulent Arinc, speaker of the Turkish Parliament, has criticized the troop movements as "disrespectful." A potentially tricky incident took place over the weekend, when 700 U.S. troops from the 4th Infantry were asked to leave their personal weapons behind at Iskenderun harbor's customs exit. Nobody wants to use the emotive word "disarmed" and U.S. and Turkish brass are trying to draw a veil over the incident as "a misunderstanding." Troops with no weapons can be passed off as logistics types helping upgrade the bases. Troops with weapons look like, well, troops with weapons. Somebody in the 4th didn't get the memo. Now that Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the leader of the Justice and Development Party, has won Sunday's parliamentary by-election in Siirt and thus qualifies to become Turkey's prime minister, Washington is not only watching for a swift re-scheduling of that parliamentary vote. Erdogan assured President George W. Bush's special envoy Zalmay Khalizad that he would get the 4th Division through to open the Northern Front on Iraq. He also told Khalizad to watch for one other sign of his good faith. The five ministers in his government who voted against the U.S. troop agreement would be sacked, Erdogan pledged. Watch this space. We'll be watching Turkey is not the only place where U.S. military activity has stepped up. The Saudis are also turning a blind eye to some unexpected new deployments on its territory west of Kuwait along the Iraqi border. Saudi opposition sources in London and Washington claim that "thousands" of U.S. troops have moved into the area -- from which the famous "Hail Mary" flank attack on 1991 was launched -- over the past week. They add that the United States has taken over the Araar airport, just 8 miles from the Iraqi border, and that they also using the airfield of Tabouk, close to the junction between the Jordanian and Iraqi frontiers. The Saudis of course deny everything. Who says President Bush has no military support from the Islamic world? Gallant little Albania, still hoping to get into NATO one day (and maybe even unite with Kosovo), has offered a contingent of its Commando troops, a special forces unit. The Kuwaitis have not yet responded, even though the Albanians have promised to bring their own Korans. Thank you, Albania. |
| Posted by:Steve |
| #3 They are providing names of terrorist financers, through involuntary raids on local offices of "charities" within their boundaries. |
| Posted by: Alaska Paul 2003-03-10 20:37:08 |
| #2 I had heard that Bosnia and Kosovo are grateful to the US for their liberation. How come they haven't joined up? Or have they? |
| Posted by: mhw 2003-03-10 16:32:40 |
| #1 Albanians are tough little buggers. They can join our fight any time! |
| Posted by: Chuck 2003-03-10 14:34:44 |