Iraq meeting overshadowed by PKK
Tensions between Turkey and Baghdad loom over talks aimed at stabilising Iraq.
Troops amassed
Both Baghdad and Washington strongly oppose any unilateral Turkish action in northern Iraq on the grounds that it would destabilise the only relatively calm region of the war-torn country.
Turkey has reportedly massed up to 100,000 troops on the border with
Your Views |
“I think it is pretty difficult to say troops shouldn’t [invade] when the Turkish soldiers are being killed, and their villages attacked” Celtic, Karlstad, Sweden |
Iraq and has threatened a military incursion to strike at PKK bases unless Baghdad and Washington promise to crack down on the fighters.
The White House has offered Ankara “actionable intelligence” on the PKK.
“We have no time to lose. All instruments – diplomatic, political, socio-cultural and military – are on the table,” Babacan said.
He also said that Turkey may restrict flights to northern Iraq.
Diplomatic efforts
Meanwhile, Tayyip Erdogan, the Turkish prime minister, is to meet with George Bush, the US president, in Washington on Monday.
Turkish troops have been engaged in major operations targeting the PKK since October 21 when a group of fighters, who Ankara says came from northern Iraq, ambushed a military unit, killing 12 soldiers and capturing eight.
The army says it has since killed 80 fighters on Turkish territory.
A top PKK commander on Thursday called on Ankara to present a peace plan that could end the group’s rebellion, which has claimed more than 37,000 lives.
Turkey refuses to have any contact with or make any concessions to the PKK.