Bush warns Turkey off Iraq

Bush warns Turkey off Iraq


US President George W Bush has issued a "very clear" warning to Turkey not to send troops into northern Iraq.
Mr Bush also said the US was working with Kurds in the region to avoid a conflagration in tensions with Turkey.

Our correspondent in south-east Turkey, Jonny Dymond, says despite denials from Ankara there is little doubt Turkish forces have infringed the Iraqi border in recent days.

Turkey fears the Kurds are aspiring to create an independent state in Iraq which could threaten its own southeastern borders.

Meanwhile, in the face of strong opposition to the US-led invasion at home, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan defended his government's decision to open airspace to coalition planes.

Security threat

Speaking to reporters at the White House on Sunday, Mr Bush said: "We've got more troops up north, and we're making it very clear to the Turks that we expect them not to come into northern Iraq."


"They know our policy, and it's a firm policy... and they know we're working with the Kurds to make sure there's not an incident that would cause there to be an excuse to go into Northern Iraq."
Acknowledging a "limited belt" of Turkish soldiers along the border, Mr Erdogan said they "aimed at stopping a possible influx of refugees... and prevent certain threats to our security".

"Turkey and the United States have reached agreement on all questions," he said in a nationwide television address.

Bolstered forces

Mr Bush's remarks that US troops in the region have been bolstered are corroborated by a report from Reuters news agency. It said more than a dozen US soldiers were seen driving in two trucks on a road near the city of Sulaimaniya. Other US forces were seen manning a checkpoint.

US-Turkish relations have been severely strained by weeks of Turkish prevarication over whether to allow in thousands of US troops, who could invade Iraq from the north.

That idea now seems finally to have been abandoned.

A senior US defence official told the BBC infantry equipment ships originally destined for Turkey - which have been awaiting instructions in the eastern Mediterranean - have now been ordered south to the Gulf.

Near miss

Turkey has allowed the US an air corridor from which to launch air attacks - but not without enraging its strong anti-war movement at home.

In the TV address, he said opening the airspace was "in Turkey's interests and is part of being an ally with the US".

On Sunday, there appears to have been near-disaster when a bomb fell from a coalition plane using the corridor.

The bomb fell just one kilometre from the village of Ozveren, Sanliurfa province. No casualties were reported.

Later two Tomahawk cruise missiles misfired and landed in an unpopulated area of Turkey, Reuters quoted a US defence official as saying.



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