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http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,3-600987,00.html [After a few phone calls from Washington and Brussels, no doubt.] The Times (London) March 6, 2003 Turkish general backs US >From Suna Erdem in Istanbul -"With a northern front, the war will be short. The pain will be less,� General Ozkok said. �If we don�t take part, we will suffer the same damage, but it won�t be possible to get compensation for the losses we suffer . . . or for us to have a say afterwards.� Turkey's powerful military intervened yesterday to break the deadlock over Washington�s request to open a northern front on Iraq through Turkish soil, lending its support to a possible new parliamentary vote allowing US troop deployment. It remains to be seen, however, whether a rare public statement by General Hilmi Ozkok, the Chief of General Staff, which also included a veiled warning against Iraqi Kurdish independence, is too late for an impatient US keen to begin an assault on President Saddam Hussein. �The Turkish Armed Forces� view is the same as the Government�s and is reflected in the motion our Government sent to parliament. With a northern front, the war will be short. The pain will be less,� General Ozkok said. �If we don�t take part, we will suffer the same damage, but it won�t be possible to get compensation for the losses we suffer . . . or for us to have a say afterwards.� The military�s views could sway MPs. General Ozkok�s statement was welcomed by Abdullah Gul, the Prime Minister, whose Government failed by three votes on Saturday to secure parliamentary approval for a deployment of up to 62,000 US troops. The military had failed to give explicit backing before that vote and General Ozkok�s statement strengthens the likelihood of the Government introducing and passing a new motion on Sunday. The general also told Iraqi Kurds that Turkey would intervene to stop any breakaway. __________________________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Tax Center - forms, calculators, tips, more http://taxes.yahoo.com/ --------------------------- ANTI-NATO INFORMATION LIST ==^================================================================ This email was sent to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] EASY UNSUBSCRIBE click here: http://topica.com/u/?a84x2u.bdn7KI.YXJjaGl2 Or send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] TOPICA - Start your own email discussion group. FREE! http://www.topica.com/partner/tag02/create/index2.html ==^================================================================
