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US urges respect of Iraq sovereignty as
Turkish troops mass
3.5.2006
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WASHINGTON, May
2, 2006 (AFP) ,-- The US government on Tuesday
called on Iraq's neighbors to respect its
territorial sovereignty as Turkey massed thousands
of troops along its border with Kurdistan (northern
Iraq).
A senior Turkish military officer, General Bekir
Kalyoncu, said Tuesday that Ankara reserved the
right to venture into Iraqi territory to pursue
separatist Kurdish rebels based there.
"We would call upon all of Iraq's neighbors to
respect Iraq's sovereignty," State Department
spokesman Sean McCormack told reporters in
Washington.
US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice urged Turkey
in late April to refrain from unilateral action
against Iraq-based separatist Kurdish rebels,
calling instead for renewed trilateral cooperation
to fight the threat. |
U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice
Photo: White House |
Turkey has deployed thousands to troops along its
border with Iraq in what officials describe as a
large-scale bid to prevent infiltrations by rebels
from the separatist Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK),
based in mountainous hideouts in northern Iraq.
Meanwhile, Iraqi Kurd officials have claimed that
Iranian forces shelled Kurdish rebel positions for a
second day on Monday, but Iran has refused to
confirm or deny the shelling reports and claims that
Iranian troops had entered Iraq.
McCormack also called on Iraq's neighbors "to work
with the government of Iraq on any issues that they
may have regarding borders and that anything that is
done is done in a transparent manner and through
mutual agreement".
The Turkish general said:"If the conditions (for a
cross-border operation) arise, Turkey will use its
rights as any sovereign country."
The Turkish army says Article 51 of the UN Charter
provides for the right of "hot pursuit" against the
PKK -- blacklisted as a terrorist group by Ankara,
the United States and the European Union -- on Iraqi
territory.
The Kurdish conflict in Turkey has claimed over
37,000 lives since the PKK launched its separatist
campaign in 1984.
AFP
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