ANKARA: Turkey slammed the US yesterday for failing to rein in Kurdish moves in Iraq at the risk of fanning regional turmoil, despite assurances from Washington that Ankara’s concerns over its conflict-torn neighbour are being addressed.
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan accused the United States of ignoring “certain developments (in Iraq) which our nation has deeply regretted,” almost simultanously as a senior Pentagon official visiting Ankara pledged that Turkish-US ties remained strong despite their differences over Iraq.
“Forces who say they came to the region to bring democracy have preferred to remain indifferent to anti-democratic ambitions,” Erdogan said in a speech in parliament, without mentioning names.
His remarks were the latest in a series of warnings by Ankara over what it sees as attempts by Iraqi Kurds to take control of the ethnically volatile city of Kirkuk at the expense of local Arabs and Turkish-speaking Turkmens.
more....
http://www.thepeninsulaqatar.com/Display_news.asp?section=World_News&subsection=Gulf%2C+Middle+East+%26+Africa&month=February2005&file=World_News20050202373.xml