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| Iraq |
| Turkish Press News |
| 2003-03-26 |
| SURPRISING STATEMENT OF U.S. COMMANDER General Henry Osman, the commander of the special unit which was sent to northern Iraq, said at a press conference that his headquarters would be in Silopi town of southeastern province of Sirnak. Noting that their target was to provide communication between Turks and Kurds, General Osman said that the United States and the coalition partners wanted to protect territorial integrity, security and stability of Iraq. So what's the surprise? GUL: ''WE WILL ENTER NORTHERN IRAQ BEFORE INFLOW OF REFUGEES'' Turkey informed the United States that it would send its military troops to northern Iraq before a possible inflow of Iraqi refugees into its borders. Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul said that they would not wait for inflow of refugees. Meanwhile, negotiations between U.S. President George W. Bush's Adviser for Iraq Zalmay Khalilzad and Ministry of Foreign Affairs Deputy Undersecretary Ali Tuygan have been continuing. Sources said that the negotiations would last for a few days. "We aren't going to wait for a refugee crisis to send in our troops, because there may not be a refugee crisis that would let us send in our troops." DEMIREL: ''UNITED STATES HANDED OVER OCALAN TO TURKEY'' Referring to Ankara's policy about Iraq, former President Suleyman Demirel said, ''the United States has made a number of gestures in the past. For instance, it was not Turkey, which captured Abdullah Ocalan, the head of the terrorist organization PKK. The United States handed over him to Turkey. I do not talk about these gestures to mean that we should be involved in the Iraq war. Turkey should have expressed its views at the very beginning.'' Oh ho! Is Turkey trying to stir up trouble by releasing this info now? SIX HELICOPTERS UNLOADED Six helicopters were unloaded from a ship in Iskenderun Port. The ship named ''Repubblica Di Roma'' brought military vehicles and equipment to the port on March 15. Sources said that the ship unloaded military vehicles and equipment it was carrying but was kept waiting at the port for ten days since it was not permitted to unload the remaining equipment because they were not notified. Unassembled helicopters and armored vehicles were unloaded from the ship. Six ''Scorsky'' helicopters unloaded from the ship would be used for search and rescue purposes. Blackhawks? And what's with the armor? TSK PREPARES ITS PLAN FOR IRAQ Turkey has determined its conditions for sending soldiers to northern Iraq. If the ''Rain Line'' in border region between Turkey and Iraq is violated, the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) will enter northern Iraq. The General Staff briefed Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and a group of members of the cabinet about recent developments in Iraq. During the meetings between government and General Staff officials, it was decided, ''if Kurdish groups violate the Rain Line, Turkish army will enter northern Iraq.'' I thought the Kurds going deeper into Iraqi territory is what was bothering Turkey? MIT: ''KADEK CAN REVIVE'' The National Intelligence Agency (MIT) briefed Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and ministers, who are members of the National Security Council (NSC) about northern Iraq. During the briefing, MIT officials referred to a possible inflow of Iraqi refugees into Turkish borders as a result of the Iraq war. ''Such an inflow of refugees can create an appropriate atmosphere for revival of the terrorist organization PKK/KADEK,'' they said. Make up your mind. |
| Posted by:Steve |