Saturday, April 21, 2007
U.S. coordinator for Iraq holds talks in Turkey
Turkey, Kurdistan, U.S.
(Turkish Daily News) - U.S. special coordinator for Iraq David Satterfield held talks on Friday with Turkish officials in Ankara, ahead of the key Iraq meeting in Sharm El Sheikh on May 3-4. During his one-day visit, Satterfield first paid a courtesy visit to Foreign Ministry Undersecretary Ertuğrul Apakan and later met with Turkey's special envoy for Iraq, Oğuz Çelikkol.
The Turkish Foreign Ministry sources told the Turkish Daily News that a possible cross-border operation by the Turkish military to crack down on the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) bases in northern Iraq was not discussed during the meeting. The ministry sources underlined that Satterfield was Iraq coordinator, not an envoy to counter the PKK. They said Turkey and the United States exchanged views on peaceful solutions to the problems faced by Iraq on the basis of consensus.
Later in the day, Satterfield visited the office of the Chief of General Staff. Satterfield's visit comes one week after Chief of General Staff Gen. Yaşar Büyükanıt called for a military incursion into northern Iraq. Washington advises Turkey to avoid any unilateral action against Iraq.
The Turkish Foreign Ministry sources told the Turkish Daily News that a possible cross-border operation by the Turkish military to crack down on the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) bases in northern Iraq was not discussed during the meeting. The ministry sources underlined that Satterfield was Iraq coordinator, not an envoy to counter the PKK. They said Turkey and the United States exchanged views on peaceful solutions to the problems faced by Iraq on the basis of consensus.
Later in the day, Satterfield visited the office of the Chief of General Staff. Satterfield's visit comes one week after Chief of General Staff Gen. Yaşar Büyükanıt called for a military incursion into northern Iraq. Washington advises Turkey to avoid any unilateral action against Iraq.
Labels: David Satterfield, Ertuğrul Apakan, Oğuz Çelikkol, PKK, Sharm El Sheikh
